Saturday in La Mirada, Concordia and Biola met for the second time of the 2017-2018 season, and the Eagle vs. Eagle showdown delivered an even more intense battle than the first. Biola bested Concordia 67-66 in a PacWest game that ran down to the final second. Following the loss, CUI is now 9-6 over and 6-3 in conference play.
Toe-To-Toe Toss Up: In the first quarter, the two teams' took turns offensively, with
Portia Neale posting the first four points for CUI.
Sopavy Seng continued the scoring, followed by a layup from
Riley Friauf. After a three-pointer from Biola's Demoria White,
Montana Walters and
Michaela Vanderklugt hit consecutive deep shots to take a quick two-point lead. Biola bounced back and neutralized the score at 17 apiece to end the first ten minutes of play. In the second, neither team took control of the game and both squads scored 16. Biola built a 10-point lead with 3:20 to go, but four points from freshman
Kennedy Fulcher followed by a bucket from
Morgan Bryant reduced the gap to six. Neale and Fulcher finished the first half with back-to-back deep shots to tie the game 33-33 entering halftime.
Biola Barely Gets By: Walters generated momentum for CUI with six points at the start of the third, but White's play kept Biola within three going into the final period. Vanderklugt scored three-straight field goals for Concordia and the five-point advantage, but White and Tatum Brimley switched the scene and put Biola up by six. CUI showcased its resilience and pushed an 8-2 scoring run to tie the game at 62 with 1:15 on the clock. White added two more to her total for the 62-60 advantage, and Vanderklugt netted a free throw to put CUI within one, but Biola made 3-4 free throws to claim a 67-64 lead with eight seconds remaining.
Reilly Walsh made a layup with two seconds to go, but it wasn't enough to reclaim the lead.
Eagle Eye: Vanderklugt posted 18 points with five rebounds and one assist. Fulcher led the team in rebounds with six while adding 13 points and an assist. Neale tallied 10 with one steal and three rebounds. Walters shot .500 from the three-point range with four assists and three steals.
What's Next: Thursday, Jan. 18th Concordia aims to take down the Sea Lions for the second time this year. Tip-Off with Point Loma (9-8, 4-6 PWC) is set for 5:30 p.m. in CU Arena.
