SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Seniors Natalie Diaz and Alanna Scott helped Dominican women's basketball hold off Hawai'i Pacific in a 77-62 victory Wednesday night at the Conlan Center.

Diaz had her best all-around game of the season with 29 points, 11 rebounds and six blocks for the Penguins (9-2, 6-1 PacWest). Scott added 18 points on 6-for-10 shooting. Samantha Lambrigsten led the Sharks (10-3, 6-1 PacWest) with 18 points and four steals.

Dominican shot 50 percent from the field and 46.2 percent from behind the arc, while holding HPU to 30.9 and 33.3 percent, respectively.

In what had been a close contest, Diaz took over at the 5 minute mark of the second quarter scoring six unanswered before finding a slashing Anjelica Collins for a layup to give the Penguins their first double-digit lead of the game with 3:17 left in the quarter. Dominican added to its lead in the final minute of the half as Collins threw a full court pass to Scott for a fastbreak layup and Marissa Mondave added an old-fashioned 3-point play to head into the locker room leading 45-29.

Diaz got the Penguins off to a strong start with four consecutive points, but Lambrigsten and Breanna Mackenzie helped the Sharks answer to tie the game at 6-6 near the midway point of the quarter. After junior Vanessa Cruz hit a midrange jumper, Dominican forced a turnover to grab back the momentum and start an 8-0 run. Hawaii Pacific would not be put away easily as it chipped away at the lead and Amy Baum hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to trim the Penguin lead to 16-15 heading to the second.

Mackenzie knocked down a jumper from behind the arc to give the Sharks their first lead of the game 10 seconds into the new quarter, but Diaz answered with a 3-pointer of her own on the other end as the lead began to seesaw. Cruz knocked down a 3-pointer and Sydney Larocca cut down the lane and dished it off to Diaz for a layup to give Dominican a 24-20 advantage with 7:35 left in the half. 

The teams traded points to start the second half, but Scott knocked down two 3-pointers to prevent HPU from grabbing the momentum. Lauryn Hippolite capped an 8-0 Shark run with a 3-pointer to trim the Penguin lead to 11, but Dominican scored the final three points of the quarter to hold the 66-52 lead heading to the final period.

Hawaii Pacific's bench was hit with two technical fouls to begin the final period resulting in head coach Reid Takatsuka's ejection. Scott knocked down 3-of-4 free throws to extend the lead to 69-52 as the momentum seemed to be firmly in the Penguins' grasp. The lead grew as large as 21, but the Sharks rallied as Mackenzie jumpstarted a 10-0 run with a 3-pointer to cut the lead back to 11 with two minutes remaining. The run came too late as Dominican sealed the game from the free-throw line to hold them off.

The Penguins will be back in action Saturday as they take on Chaminade at 2 p.m. PST at the Conlan Center. Dominican will be hosting its Alumni Day and live stats and video will be available online.