Box Score SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Dominican women's basketball fell 96-73 to Academy of Art at the Conlan Center on Saturday.
 
Junior Natalie Diaz led the Penguins (14-6, 8-4 PacWest) with 26 points on 10-17 shooting. Freshman Julia Razo netted 19 points and sophomore Alanna Scott added 13. Pre'franz Dominick led the Urban Knights (6-15, 5-8 PacWest) with 26 points and 12 rebounds.
 
Both teams came out of the gate firing offensively. Sophomore Vanessa Cruz came away with a steal on an outlet pass, laying it in to give Dominican a 9-7 lead nearly halfway through the first quarter. Academy of Art made a run to take a 20-13 lead but Razo and Scott made back-to-back 3-pointers to trim the Penguins' deficit to 22-19.
 
Razo stayed hot in the second quarter, burying a pair of triples on Dominican's first two possessions in the frame. Scott followed with another 3-pointer, putting the Penguins ahead 32-31. A few minutes later, Diaz tied the game at 40-40 with a jumper and a pair of free throws from Scott helped Dominican to a 45-42 lead at halftime.
 
A layup from Diaz put the Penguins ahead 50-47 early on in the third quarter. Academy of Art then responded with their key run of the game, scoring 16 unanswered points to take a 63-50 lead with just over two minutes remaining in the period. Scott eventually ended the run with a layup but the Urban Knights outscored the Penguins 9-2 to finish the quarter, taking an 18-point lead into the fourth quarter.
 
The Urban Knights went right to work in the fourth, extending their lead to 24 early in the frame. Dominican was unable to get back into it, snapping their four-game winning streak.
 
Dominican takes the court again Thursday as they start a four-game road trip at Hawaii Pacific in a 4:30 p.m. start. Live stats and video will be available online.