SANTA CLARITA, Calif. -- The Miracle on Meadview!  Vanguard women's basketball seemed down and out on Saturday against the Lions of Bryan College (Tenn.), as the Blue and Gold trailed 43-29 at halftime.  Yet despite few things clicking at first, the VU Lions stormed back in the second half, outscoring Bryan 49-29 and holding them to only two baskets from the field in the final frame.  The 78-72 victory puts VU at 4-1 on the season and drops Bryan to 4-4. 
 
Halle Si'i was the star for the Lions even though she fouled out, as Si'i made 33 points in 36 minutes of action, shooting 12-for-25 from the field, making two shots from downtown, and dishing out six assists.  Alexa Silva nailed three shots from beyond the arc and was the only other VU played who scored in double figures, as she posted 11 points.  The team as a whole picked up the slack on the defensive side of the ball, as Bryan went from shooting 50% in the second quarter to 16.7% in the third and 11.1% in the fourth.
 
What Happened?  Vanguard went down 5-0 over the first two minutes of the game but a Sarah Matossian jumper got the Blue and Gold on the board.  However, Bryan then rattled off a 10-0 run that put the Lions from Tennessee in the clear.  Layups from Airiana Madanski and Melissa Akullu helped to stop the bleeding and a three from Si'i cut the gap to six at 15-9.  The VU squad continued to close in, as an Ashlin Crabtree layup and a pair of free throws by Madanski slit the deficit to 15-13 and Vanguard would trail 17-15 at the end of one quarter. 
 
However, the second quarter got away from the Blue and Gold, as Bryan outscored VU 26-14 in the frame, creating the 14-point spread that separated the two sides at the intermission.  Bryan held its largest lead of the game in the second, as they led by 19 points with 2:46 remaining in the half.
 
Akullu made the opening basket of the third period but Bryan would increase the lead to 51-33 with 5:36 to go in the frame.  But hope still remained and Vanguard would take over the rest from there, starting with a three from Crabtree with 4:44 left on the board.  A pair of free throws from Si'i began her own personal barrage, as she made nine of the final 13 points VU would score in the third.
 
Down 60-51 to open the final quarter, Silva sunk a three 10 seconds in to shrink the gap to six. Si'i then made four free throws over a 30-second span, but a layup from Bryan helped the squad regain a 10-point lead at 68-58 with 7:30 to go in the contest.  However, that layup would be the final bucket from the field for Bryan, as the squad would only make free throws the rest of the way.
 
Jaryn Madsen and Silva knocked down threes on back-to-back trips into the offensive zone to slim the gap to 68-64 and another downtown swish for Madsen with 5:07 to go closed the score to 68-67.  Bryan made a pair of free throws, but another excellent drive and finish from Si'i kept the Lions down by one.  On the next trip down the court, Si'i spotted an open Matossian, who drained a three-point shot to give Vanguard its first lead of the game.
 
Si'i made a free throw to extend the lead to 73-70 but Bryan made a pair themselves with a minute to go to make the score 73-72.  Si'i then fouled out with 2:25 to go but that would not halt the growing VU confidence.  With 38 seconds to go, Vanguard ran through an offensive set and Matossian got fouled and made one of her free throws to keep VU in the lead.  Madanski and Silva would each sink shots from the charity stripe over the final 20 seconds of the game and Bryan did not make another shot, as Vanguard completed the comeback to win 78-72.
 
VU shot 37.1% from the field in the game and 54.5% in the fourth period alone.  The Lions also shot 32.3% from downtown in the game and 71.4% rate in the fourth frame.  The team went 16-for-24 from the line for the game and also converted shots from the charity stripe at a 71.4% mark in the fourth period.  VU held a 51-40 edge in rebounds in the game, including a 23-15 edge on the offensive glass.  Bryan shot 36.7% from the floor in the game and had Samantha Russell and Kaitlynn Hennessee score 24 and 20 points respectively.
 
Akullu led VU with 13 rebounds and eight points, with Crabtree also notching eight points.
 
Why is it Important?  The Blue and Gold take the first meeting against Bryan all-time but Si'i stole the show in setting a career-high of 33 points in a game.  She cleared her previous high of 25, which she reached twice last year against Rocky Mountain (Mont.) and Westmont. Vanguard has now won three games in a row as well.
 
 
What was Said? After the game, Head Coach Russ Davis was very impressed with his team.  "We really struggled offensively and defensively for most of the game.  We were challenged by Bryan all game long, but we answered that challenge and our team showed tremendous gut and grit in the second half.  With all we had happened today, with Halle fouling out, Melissa having an off game, we came back and through all that adversity.  We dug down, Halle took over and she was tremendous even though she fouled out.  Alexa stepped up when Halle did foul out and we hit some big shots down the stretch and as a coach, you are always enthusiastic to see your players convert their shots at the freethrow line under such pressure.  We had such good momentum rolling that we would not lose after that.  To hold a team without a field goal for eight minutes is incredible."
 
"What a team effort.  I can't highlight everyone here, but this was a special moment, and I am so proud of this team.  I told them after the game that there have been some really special moments for me as a coach, with plenty of great teams doing some amazing things and I am very blessed, and this game has moved into that top 10 list of those moments."
 
What's Next?  The Blue and Gold will have some time off but then face quite the challenge when they return to the court in Arizona at the annual Cactus Class in Chandler.  VU will face two ranked teams and their first one is quite the challenge, as VU will take on #3 Indiana Wesleyan on December 20 at 2:00 p.m.