SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The Dominican University of California women's basketball team kept it close in the first half at Division I Santa Clara but eventually fell 81-55 in exhibition play on Thursday night in the Leavey Center.
"Tonight was a great opportunity for us to learn about our team. What I'm most excited about is that we can play really well at a high level," said Head Coach
Tim LaKose, who takes over the Dominican women's basketball program for 2014-15. "The key now is to get more consistent at that. We'll look at the video tomorrow, see what we did well and areas that we need to work on, then get on the floor and work on those.
Dominican kept it close with free throws in the first half, getting to the line 20 times and converting a dozen of those to stay at an arm's distance, 31-24, at intermission.
Before fouling out on a loose-ball foul with four minutes to go, Alyssa Weatherd scored a team-best 10 points for the Penguins. Starting guard
Carly Holboke added eight points.
Jessy Marshall and
Sandra Ikeora each scored six points off the bench.
The Broncos' post players took full advantage of their size come the second half. Morgan McGwire came off the bench to score 17 points and snatch 12 rebounds. Starting forward Marie Bertholdt scored 12 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Santa Clara's leading scorer, Nici GIlday, made all three of her three pointers and finished with 11 points. Katie Hawkins went 4-for-4 from the field and added 10 points.
Despite its disadvantage inside, the Penguins held their own much of the night and were only outscored 18-10 in the paint. At the defensive end, Dominican tallied 13 blocks with six recorded by starting center
Sarah Nelson. Additionally, the senior grabbed seven rebounds.
"The team is getting better everyday. You could see some really bright spots both individually and team-wise and you also saw areas we need to work on," added LaKose "I'm excited of the potential of this team."
Dominican will have one final tune up before games count with an exhibition on Wednesday, Nov. 12 when they head to Vallejo to face California Maritime. Tipoff is slated for 7 p.m.
