SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – The Concordia University Irvine women's basketball team secured its third straight victory with an 81-60 thumping of the Academy of Art Urban Knights on Thursday evening.

Freshman guard Izzy Navarro led all scorers with 22 points. She cashed in at the free throw line by knocking down 11 of her 14 attempts.

Navarro also canned three treys while Stephanie Lee added a pair of triples from downtown. As a team, CUI shot an impressive 47 percent from three-point land, going 8-for-17 overall.

Camryn Kiernan collected a team-high six rebounds to go with nine points.  First-year point guard Hannah Vela added eight points and senior Savannah Felix-Amoroso finished with a dozen.

Concordia has now won five of its last six overall and sits in the top half of the PacWest Conference standings. This also marks five straight victories over the Urban Knights in women's basketball.

"I think the biggest difference in our progression throughout the season has been our commitment to team defense," said CUI head coach Christine Collins-Kiernan. "We have found a way to get multiple people to fit into some very key roles that has helped us on the defensive end, but it's also helped us on the offensive end. They are a young team that has been consistently growing throughout the season, and when they take it moment by moment, they usually have success."

"I think they did a great job (against ART U) of getting control of that fourth quarter getting multiple stops in a row and finding ways to score and grow a lead," added Collins-Kiernan. "We had multiple players step up to get key stops, hit big shots, and grab crucial rebounds. As we continue to focus on the things we can control, success will find us."
The Golden Eagles enter the weekend tied for fourth place in the league with Biola after Thursday night's results.

Both CUI and Biola are 7-4 in PacWest play, with Fresno Pacific just percentage points ahead. Azusa Pacific is a perfect 10-0 in league action with Dominican two games behind the leaders.

CUI continues its road trip up north this Saturday, Jan. 27 against Dominican. The Golden Eagles will face the Penguins beginning at 1 p.m. with the men's game to follow.

CLICK HERE for the full CUI women's basketball schedule