COSTA MESA – Women's basketball survived a testy second-half performance to take down Concordia 68-63 Saturday night and clinch a berth to the Pacific West Tournament in early March. VU was a force to be reckoned with in the first half at the Freed Center, forcing 19 turnovers to lead by as many as 29. The second half was a separate story, however, as the Golden Eagles outscored VU 47-23, with the Lions managing just one field goal (1-12) in a hectic final quarter.

The Blue and Gold's win pushes them to 18-4 and 14-3 in the league. VU is now one of three teams to have already booked their ticket to the PacWest Tournament, as they'll prepare for a potential regular season title decider against Point Loma next Thursday. Concordia (13-11, 11-8) split the regular season with the Lions, and remains the primary gatekeepers in the last coveted position in the table in sixth place, two games ahead of Biola.

Emma Schaaf delivered her sixth career 20-point game (7-17 FG) and fourth of the season. She also paired it with seven rebounds and a game-high four blocks. Micaela Hanning went for 11 points, five rebounds, four assists, and three steals. Kayla Boozer only missed one shot (5-6 FG) on her way to 10 points. Kaylee Byon struggled with foul trouble, eventually bowing out with nine points, four dimes, and three steals. Aryanna Hudson and Akilah Kubi each claimed seven points, with Kubi owning a team-high eight rebounds.

CUI's Camryn Kiernan had a career-high 29 points and also picked up five boards.

What Happened?
VU led in points off turnovers 24-0 at the half and started the trend with a physical press in the early stages of the game. They had nine first-quarter steals and scored back-to-back buckets on the break through Hanning and Byon. The next fast break point was triggered by a Schaaf block, setting up Hanning to square the first three-pointer of the night from the wing (11-4 VU). The Lions downed 55% of their shots and held the Golden Eagles scoreless for three minutes, boasting an 11-0 run to cap a 24-8 first quarter.

The Golden Eagles continued to struggle from deep, going empty from three-point range to close off the first half. Kiernan maintained most of the scoring burden with a willingness to get to the cup (25-11 VU). After a longstanding stalemate, Boozer broke through in the lane, and the Hanning, Schaaf pick and pop combination gave the Lions their 30th point.  Concordia was restrained to single digits (8 points) again for the quarter as Jaryn Madsen's corner three closed the half with VU's largest lead of the game at 29 (45-16).

The visitors managed to slow down their offense in the second half, cutting down their giveaways to four. They also finally clicked from three, led by Kiernan, who had 23 second-half points, nearly of Concordia's total haul in the last 20 minutes.

Byon's foul trouble was apparent in the first half, with two heading into the third quarter. Its consequences, however, manifested themselves less than two minutes into the next half, as the transfer picked up a costly third foul to gamble with her gametime.

The Lions were blitzed 16-5 to start their lowest scoring quarter and saw bad go to worse after Byon picked up her fourth foul with 3:02 left to go (51-32 VU). Vanguard netted a four-point boost with consecutive points from Boozer, including a block from the freshman. CUI had the final say; however, with Kiernan's first three-point basket of the game, an omen for an uncomfortable last 10 minutes.

Despite the 18-point deficit to start, Concordia looked the favorite to take the match with the whirlwind of momentum from the previous interval. They shot a game-best 57% (8-14) in the closing quarter, 50% (3-6) from three, and 7-9 (77%) from downtown.

CUI drew first blood, and Natalie Scherzer had a response from three-point range. It was the last Vanguard field goal made of the game in the remaining eight minutes, a margin that nearly cost Vanguard the match. Kiernan had 15 fourth-quarter points and drilled nine of the next 11 CUI points to cut it down to a seven-point game (58-51 VU).

The pressure was on in the final five minutes as the Golden Eagles forced two shot clock violations from Vanguard. The turning point came with 2:42 left to go, after CUI tacked on another big defensive stop, but picked up a technical foul for a whistle after the play.

Vanguard went from being outscored 14-3 in the quarter to being awarded two free throws, which were hit by Byon and possession of the rock in CUI territory (60-51). VU managed the clock and slowed the game down in the last two minutes. Despite fouling out, Byon hit three of her last four free throws to help ice the game in a cagey conclusion.

What Was Said? "Tale of two halves," started Head Coach Russ Davis. "Not quite sure what I watched in the second half. The first half was well-executed, and we really played hard and competed. The second half was a real physical style, and we didn't adjust well, I guess. Credit to Concordia for never quitting and playing with a purpose. Usually, when you have a half like that, you get beaten. Thankfully, we had a big lead and found a way to get it done. We are definitely still a work in progress. Good win."

What's Next? VU will battle with Point Loma in a marquee matchup next Thursday, Feb. 19, at 5:30 p.m.