IRVINE, Calif. - For the second time in less than a week, the Point Loma women's basketball team fell to the No. 4 team in NCAA Division II, California Baptist, but this latest time came in the Sea Lions' first-ever appearance in the PacWest Tournament Championship. PLNU jumped in front early but could not hold back a second-quarter surge from the Lancers, which lifted them to an 80-72 victory on Saturday, Mar. 4.
 
"That was a really hard fought battle against two teams that know each other really well and match up really well," said Point Loma head coach Lisa Faulkner. "What you saw was two teams competing as hard as they can until that final buzzer went off."
 
Things looks great for No. 2 seed Point Loma (24-5) early as it jumped out to a 19-7 lead against the No. 1 seed, but California Baptist (31-2) did not let the Sea Lions enjoy the lead very long as it answered with a 24-5 run to take a 36-30 lead into the locker room. CBU extended that lead to as many as 16 (54-38) thanks to a 9-0 run to open the second half. But the Sea Lions would not go down without a fight.
 
PLNU scored the next seven points in a row to cut the lead to single-digits (54-45) and then held on through another CBU run as it found itself down 73-60 with 2:23 remaining. Point Loma then turned up the press and rattled off eight straight points to cut it to 73-68 with 1:10 left. A pair of free throws by Madison West had the Sea Lions down just four points (74-70) with 41 second remaining, but CBU went 6-for-6 from the charity stripe in the last 41 seconds to thwart the Sea Lions' comeback attempt.
 
"That is very veteran team that has been in this game for four straight years and their seniors knew what it was about, and we didn't have that experience," explained Faulkner. "In that second quarter they attacked us, we got on our heels and that was the difference in the game. If you take that second quarter out it, it might have been a different game. But they have great players and you have to give credit to them as well."
 
"In the fourth quarter we fought back by playing Point Loma women's basketball," added junior forward Roya Rustamzada. "I am so proud of the way this team played with heart and battled till the end. The second and third quarters are just not who we are."
 
Alex Brunk, who was named to the PacWest all-tournament team, led PLNU with 25 points and nine rebounds. She was 8-of-14 from the field and 9-of-10 at the free throw line, while adding two assists, three blocks and two steals. Roya Rustamzada matched a career-high with five steals and was also voted to the PacWest All-Tournament team. She also scored 15 points and grabbed four rebounds. Kassidy Gengenbacher posted 12 points and matched Rustamzada with five steals off the bench.
 
"I am proud of our women and how well they stuck together and how hard they competed; it is all you can ask for as a coach," said Faulkner.
 
CBU's Cassidy Mihalko led Cal Baptist with 22 points. She was 9-of-14 from the field and 4-of-5 from behind the arc. Camille Diaz and Courtney Nelson chipped in with 13 and 14 points, respectively.
 
Point Loma won the turnover battle in the game 26-10, and outscored the Lancers 27-5 in points off turnovers. This allowed the Sea Lions to get 13 more shots in the game, however, they shot just 34.2 percent from the field (25-of-73), while CBU made nearly 50 percent of their shots (29-of-60). That percentage helped the Lancers to win the rebounding battle by plus-16 (49-33). CBU was also 9-for-18 from 3-point range as a team, while PLNU went just 5-of-25 from behind the arc.
 
The Point Loma women's basketball team, which was No. 6 in the latest NCAA West Region poll, will now await to find out its seed in the NCAA West Regional (Mar. 9-13) and where it will be held. PLNU will watch the NCAA.com Selection Show on Sunday, Mar. 5 at 7 p.m. at Buffalo Wild Wings on Midway Drive to find out their fate and their opponent. All Point Loma fans are invited to going the team at BWW on Midway Drive.