La Mirada, Calif. – Wearing their new white uniforms for the first time, the Concordia University Irvine women's basketball team put on a show Saturday against the University of Alaska Fairbanks to secure its first victory of the young season.
CUI topped UAF for a 70-53 victory and had three different players in double figures. Coach
Christine Collins-Kiernan's squad also made a conscious effort to defend the three-point line and limited the Nanooks to a paltry 13 percent shooting from downtown (2-for-15).
"We shared the ball really well and it was a great team win, everybody was part of the scoring," said
Camryn Kiernan, who poured in 15 points to lead the Golden Eagles. "We like the white jerseys, they look really good. It was fun, it was exciting."
Kiernan and her teammates were coming off a tightly-contested contest the night before, where
she hit a clutch trey in the last minute of regulation to force overtime on Friday against Cal State San Bernardino.
Long-range specialist
Stephanie Lee and Preseason All-Conference selection
Teagan Thurman each chipped in with 11 points apiece. Kiernan was one point shy of tying her career-high of 16 that she did against Chaminade last season.
CUI was consistent each quarter, scoring at least 17 points in all four frames. They built a large lead in the first 20 minutes and led 36-20 at halftime.
Freshman
Izzy Navarro showed off multiple scoop layups from difficult angles and routinely flashed her playmaking skills to set up her teammates. The Tijuana, Mexico native finished with six points, four assists and four rebounds.
New Golden Eagles
Shushan Krikorian and
Silvia Garcia also both hit the first field goal of their collegiate careers. Rosary Academy alum
Ava Dominguez made her CUI debut as well and Rosary alum
Caylee Santos drained a three-pointer in the fourth.
The two schools had not played each other in women's basketball since 1996. This marked the first win for Concordia over Alaska Fairbanks in a women's basketball game in 30 years. The last time CUI defeated the Nanooks was all the way back in 1993.
CUI will return to action this coming Wednesday, Nov. 15 at 5:30 p.m. at Cal State Dominguez Hills.
CLICK HERE for the CUI women's basketball schedule
