ROCKLIN, Calif. – The Vanguard women's basketball team returned to Jessup just a few days after coming back with two wins at the WJU Thanksgiving Tournament. However, the team arriving in Rocklin Thursday night was more banged up than the one that touched down a week ago, leaving the squad with eight active players. That made the game against the Warriors tense throughout, as the Lions held a small lead for the majority of the game. But the Warriors found a way in the fourth quarter, as WJU outscored the Lions 14-7 to sneak out with a 51-48 win. The Lions fell to 5-1 overall and 1-1 in the Golden State Athletic Conference, while Jessup went to 6-5 overall and 2-1 in GSAC play.
What Happened? Both teams did not shoot the three amazingly well, as the Lions went 6-for-25 and WJU was 8-of-26. Vanguard had a better rebound margin for the game (48-34), and even had a 15-11 edge on the offensive glass, but could not sink some key shots as the clock wound down. The turnover battle also hurt the Lions, as they handed it over 19 times compared to 10 for Jessup. Melissa Akullu (JR/Kampala, Uganda) played the entire game for the Lions, as she collected 11 points and 21 rebounds for a second-straight double-double. Lauren Baumgartner (SR/Meridian, ID) led the team with 13 points. Five of the seven players who logged minutes for VU played over 30 minutes on the night.
The Warriors made the first bucket of the game and led by one or two for most of the first frame, but a triple from Faith Boss (FR/Torrance, CA) gave VU its first lead at 8-7 with 3:25 left in the first. She knocked down another to make it a four-point lead, but a late layup by the Warriors cut the lead to 11-9 at the end of the first.
The Warriors swung proceedings back in their favor with a 9-3 burst to open the second frame, but Alexa Silva (SO/Lemoore, CA) and Boss buried threes to reestablish a 20-18 advantage for the Blue and Gold. There was then a dry spell of baskets by both sides in the second, but VU would go up by five off a pair of free throws by Silva with 1:10 to go. However, a three for WJU with 50 seconds to go sliced the Vanguard lead to 27-25 at halftime.
Inspired by the talk at the break, VU pulled away to a 33-27 lead over the first four minutes of the third, with Airiana Madanski (JR/Gilbert, AZ), Akullu, and Baumgartner all knocking down shots. Jessup would climb back into it though, as the hosts posted a 10-2 run to knot the score at 37-all at the 1:19 mark. Despite the counterpunch, the Lions answered with a 4-0 run to end the period, taking a 41-37 lead into the final 10 minutes of play.
Unfortunately, the defense for Jessup really pressured the VU shooters, as the Blue and Gold shot only 11.1% in the fourth. The game was tied at 41-41 almost two minutes in but the Lions kept a narrow lead until 1:22 left in the fourth, as a layup and a made free throw gave the Warriors a 49-48 lead. Vanguard could not hit its final two shot attempts over the final 20 seconds of the game, falling 51-48.
Vanguard shot 30.2% for the game and made 10-of-14 free throws. WJU shot 32.3% for the game and made 3-of-6 free throws. Boss added nine points and Silva had eight. Sarah Matossian was second on the team with eight rebounds and Akullu led the squad with three assists.
Why is it Important? The first GSAC loss will give WJU its third victory over the Lions in 19 tries. The Lions are now sixth in the GSAC standings.
What was Said? "We gave ourselves some chances to win the game," said Head Coach Russ Davis. "Having so many people out obviously hurt us, but we also had chances to finish off the game. I am disappointed but we have to bounce back for Saturday's game with a lineup that is still depleted of some starters and depth players. So, we will regroup and make a better showing at Menlo. Hats off to WJU. We led for most of the game but they never gave up."
What's Next? The Lions will rest tomorrow and take on the Oaks of Menlo College on Saturday, December 3, at noon.
