SAN MARCOS, Calif. - A 14-0 run to start the second half and a career-high 21 points from Madison West lifted the Point Loma women's basketball team to a 79-62 win over Cal State San Marcos in a non-conference contest on Wednesday, Feb. 18.
 
The Sea Lions, who were ranked No. 9 in the NCAA West Region poll released earlier in the day, improved to 16-10 on the season, while the Cougars fell to 11-16.
 
West led the Sea Lions in scoring with 21 points, but interestingly, the sharpshooter did most of her damage from inside the arc this evening. West shot 8-of-13 from the field, making all three of her 3-point attempts, en route to posting her career-high.
 
She was joined in double-figures by Jessica Esocrza with 13 points and Roya Rustamzada with 12. Escorza added a team-leading four steals and tied Amy Ogren with three assists. Riley Abraham paced the Sea Lions with seven rebounds. Cassie Damyanovich scored a game-high 23 points to lead Cal State San Marcos. She made six 3-pointers.
 
Point Loma won the turnover battle by 10 as it forced CSUSM into 21 turnovers.  The Cougars had just three steals in the game and the Sea Lions had 14. PLNU outscored CSUSM 24-9 on points off turnovers.
 
The game was tied 32-32 at the half. The Sea Lions' defense took over in the final 20 minutes, holding CSUSM to 31 percent shooting and just 6-of-23 from inside the arc. With their defense cranked up Point Loma opened the second half by scoring the first 14 points to turn a tie game into a 46-32 Sea Lion lead. The Cougars would never again get within 10 points and the Sea Lions cruised to the 79-62 win.
 
"Our defense, our instincts, and grabbing some key rebounds were keys tonight," said Point Loma sophomore guard Madison West. "Cal State San Marcos is a scrappy, aggressive team with some good talent. In the second half our energy on defense and poise on offense, with aggressiveness, really helped us.
 
"When we share the ball we play really well," West explained. "We have good chemistry and you can see it with our teamwork. Next week we have two tough match-ups to get ready for. I'm really excited about the rest of the season. We've really improved and we are continuing to get better!"
 
Point Loma's next game will be its Senior Day contest against Notre Dame de Namur at home on Thursday, Feb. 26 at 5:30 p.m. The Sea Lions will close out their season that Saturday (Feb. 28) at Dixie State.