SAN RAFAEL, Calif. — The Dominican University of California women's basketball team used an aggressive mix of small ball to top UH Hilo 71-52 to open a five-game homestand on Saturday night.

The Penguins led by as much as eight in the first half and went into halftime with a 33-30 advantage of the important PacWest battle. A third of their points came from Allyssa Weatherd on 4-of-5 shooting in the first half. Sarah Nelson, who pulled down just two rebounds at the half, set the tone in the second half with a signature block on the opening possesion, then proceeded to rack up the rebounds in the second half. She finished with eight points, 11 rebounds, and four blocks before fouling out at the eight-minute mark, at which Dominican led by seven.

From there, Dominican's guards picked up the slack. Jumpers by Weatherd and Jade Castro quickly gave Dominican a 10-point lead and some breathing room with the team's center on the bench. After Kirstie Wililams pulled UH Hilo within seven with a three, Castro answered with a three of her own. Then, Weatherd scored in the paint, and Danielle Yamauchi scored back-to-back fast break layups to put the Penguins up 16, 64-48, with 3:40 to go. Another Castro jumper in the final minute would give Dominican its final margin of victory.

The Penguins held the Vulcans to 33.9 percent shooting (19-of-56) and kept their five reserves scoreless in the first half. Dominican also dominated the glass 53-33, getting 13 from Lauren Hyatt, which matched a career high.

Weatherd led all players with 22 points on 6-of-12 shooting. She also grabbed six rebounds and dished out three assists. Castro went 8-for-12 from the field and was 3-of-4 from behind the line for 19 points. Jessy Marshall added seven points and Yamauchi had six points, five rebounds, and three assists.

CC Rode and Hayley Reynolds each had 10 points apiece for the Vulcans.

Dominican's five-game homestand continues on Monday, Jan. 19 when BYU-Hawaii visits the Conlan Center. Tipoff is slated for 5:30 p.m. Live video and stats will be available at dominicanathletics.com/live with audio provided by radio.dominican.edu.