San Dimas, Calif -- Women's basketball returned to the floor Thursday night as Golden State Athletic Conference play took the Lions to the campus of Life Pacific. Despite missing two key players, the Lions were efficient at both ends and never trailed in the game, cruising to an 81-44 victory. VU improves to 4-1 overall and 2-1 in the GSAC, while LPU falls to 0-9 and 0-3 in the GSAC.
What Happened? Both sides missed their first attempts at making a field goal but Airiana Madanski (SO/Gilbert, AZ) got VU on the board by splitting a seam and making the layup 1:20 in. Then Melissa Akullu (SO/Kampala, Uganda) took over to start her huge night, as the center made four free throws and converted another lay-in to put the Lions up by six. With 4:40 to go in the first quarter, Akullu then secured an offensive rebound to reset the team. The ball eventually ended in the hands of Alexa Silva (FR/Lemoore, CA) in the corner, who buried the three to put the Lions up 13-4. Life Pacific had some momentum going the rest of the frame though, as they put up a 9-6 run to close out the quarter, with VU up 19-13 at the horn.
After a chance to get refocused between the quarters, the Blue and Gold came back to the court and played with some big energy. After the Warriors got the first basket of the second, Hannah Monty (JR/Rancho Santa Margarita, CA) made a smooth pass through the defense to Madanski, who collected another make on the corner three. A steal by Akullu in the defensive end allowed her to drive and score at the other on the next LPU possession. Monty then found Madanski again for another open triple that she finished off, running the score to 27-15 with eight minutes left in the half.
The Lions continued the barrage and pushed the lead to 32-15 with 5:40 to go, as LPU called a timeout to stem the tide. They were able to make the next bucket but Alyssa Salgado (JR/Whittier, CA) took another great feed from Monty and converted the three-point shot. Over the final few minutes of the half, the Warriors made another small run but Akullu was dominant over the final minute. She made a free throw before grabbing her own rebound on the second attempt that missed. She floated the put-back off the glass and in, with the center then finishing out the first half with one more free throw to put VU ahead 39-21 at the intermission. VU shot 36% from the floor in the first half, made four of 14 shots from downtown, and converted seven of 10 shots from the charity stripe.
Vanguard started the second half with a nice tic-tac-toe passing sequence from Lauren Baumgartner (JR/Meridian, ID), to Akullu, and on to Gabriela Rosas (SR/Chihuahua, Mexico) who put home the short jumper. The team then put down nine unanswered, with Akullu making the first four, Monty sliding down the baseline for a layup, and Madanski splashing down for three again off an assist from Baumgartner. The Warriors did not score until there was 5:33 left in the period and outscored VU 12-5 over the final five minutes, but the Blue and Gold had a comfortable 61-35 lead.
The Lions held on to the 30-point lead and grew it to 38 before a late free throw brought the final gap to 37 points. The Lions outscored LPU 20-9 in the fourth quarter, with Silva leading the way with four three-point baskets. The final horn gave the team a nice bounce-back win 81-44.
The Lions shot 37.5% from the field, going 10 of 34 (29.4%) from deep and converting 11 of the team's17 free throws (64.7%). Life Pacific shot 32.1% from the field on the night. VU also won the rebound battle 48-44, holding a 20-10 margin in the offensive rebound category. The team also forced 29 turnovers and made 35 points off of those mistakes by the Warriors. Akullu had 35 points and 20 rebounds to lead both categories for the Lions. Madanski was 4-of-9 from downtown and had 18 points, while Silva was 5-of-8 from deep and to end with 15 points. Monty had a team-high seven assists.
What was Said? "Glad we won and we still have lots of work to and adjustments to make while we navigate through our injuries," said Head Coach Russ Davis. "Melissa was huge for us obviously. She keeps getting better and better."
Why is it Important? VU is now 5-0 against the Warriors all-time and has always won by 30-plus points.
What is Next? The team will have to get ready for their first clash with #2 Westmont next Thursday, December 9th, at 5:30 p.m. in the Pit.
