LA MIRADA, Calif. - With third place in the PacWest on the line the Concordia University Women's basketball team traveled up the I-5 to take on former GSAC and current PacWest rival, BIOLA University.
On BIOLA's senior night, the Eagles attempt at playing spoiler was successful as they beat BU 59-51.
The Eagles were led by junior forward Michaela VanderKlugt who posted yet another double-double, her ninth of the year. She finished with a final line of 27 points, 12 rebounds, three steals, and one assist.
The first quarter felt like it dragged on forever as both teams struggled to put points on the board. Both teams shot below 35% and headed into the second quarter knotted at ten.
"I think the first quarter for both teams was a struggle," said VanderKlugt. "We struggled to put the ball in the basket. Our shots weren't falling but our defense was great!"
The Eagles defense, coming off a stellar game against Art U, held BU to nine points in the second quarter on 3-13 shooting (23%).
The Eagles offense, putting up 16 points in the second quarter, managed to create the necessary space needed to come out on top, as the two teams were basically even in the entire second half.
Freshman guard and current PacWest Freshman of the Week Lainie James joined VanderKlugt in double figures with ten points, to go along with four rebounds and one assist.
"Tonight's win was big," said James. "We had to lock in on the defensive end and be confident in our ability to get stops in order to get our offense flowing. We did all the little things tonight, resulting in a significant win. It was a lot of fun."
The Eagles, who have struggled with teams who play a zone defense, managed to pick apart Biola's zone as the game went on, eventually forcing them to go man, evidently opening up more space for their offense to operate.
"I think we did a really good job of moving the ball to find the open gaps and areas in their zone," said freshman guard Sierra Clark. "We also penetrated well, which allowed us to get easy shots down low and kick outs to our shooters."
"As we picked apart the zone moving the ball was key," added VanderKlugt. "Flashing into open spots made way for give and goes. In the second half I got comfortable, the ball started falling through the net, and we never looked back as a team."
Tonight's game marks the sixth time in the last eight games that the Eagles have held their opponent to single digits in at least one quarter of the game. The Eagles' defense ranks fifth in the conference in points given up per game with 63.6.
"Defense is the game plan every game," said head coach Christine Collins-Kiernan. "We have been on a three week journey of revamping our defensive approach and the girls have set upon it with a vengeance. Their effort is starting to really pay off for us. I can look at them as a group of young women and see that we are about overcoming challenges and pursuing growth. Our production is team given and being able to see multiple players step up at different times when needed has been an incredible boost!"
The Eagles are back in action on Saturday as they host Azusa Pacific University. The game has been selected by the NCAA and ESPN to be broadcast on WatchESPN (ESPN 3).
The women's game starts at 5:35pm followed by the men's game at 7:35pm.
