SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Dominican women's basketball fell in a close 79-71 game Thursday night to Point Loma Nazarene University at the Conlan Center.

Senior forward Jerusha Paine led the Penguins (3-4, 0-1 PacWest) with 26 points and nine rebounds. Freshman guard Brittney Cedeno added 11 points, five rebounds and three assists. The Sealions (5-2, 1-0 PacWest) pounded the glass for a huge 57-38 advantage, including 23 offensive rebounds. Cara Liggins and Onjalise Carley-Hilliard each contributed double-doubles of 17 points and 10 rebounds while Sydney Peterson also finished with 17 points for PLNU.

Liggins led the Sealions to a strong start as she sunk two 3-pointer to open a 14-5 lead in the first four minutes of the game. Marisa Mondave knocked down a 3-pointer of her own and Jordan Charlton drove to the hoop for two more to quickly cut the deficit to four at the midway point of the quarter.

The teams traded buckets for the remainder of the second and Razo gave the Penguins a jump start in the second with five quick points before Paine knocked down a free throw to give them the 22-21 lead with eight minutes left in the half. Liggins broke a two minute scoreless streak for both teams with a corner 3-pointer and Onjalise Carley-Hilliard laid it in seconds later for a 26-22 lead. Nicole Gleeson beat the defense down the court and Cedeno hit her on a long pass to get Dominican back on the board and Gleeson added a free throw to make it a 1-point game. The teams traded buckets with the Sealions leading 31-30 at the break.

Paine struck first for the Penguins in the second half and Cedeno found Razo on a fastbreak to cap a 6-2 run that gave them the 36-33 lead with 7:26 on the clock. PLNU fought back to tie the game at 39 near the midway point of the quarter, but Paine kept the Penguins ahead for the next few minutes until she found Cedeno in the left corner for a 3-pointer to make it 46-41. Kylie Hearn and Isabel Turk both knocked down shots behind the arc for the Sealions to get them back in the lead at 48-46.

PLNU held a slim 51-50 lead to start the fourth and Peterson knocked down a 3-pointer to push the lead to four on the opening possession. Paine tied it two minutes later with a spin move in the paint for a layup as the game remained tight. Cedeno hit a step back 3-pointer and then found Mondave in the corner for another to make it 60-58 Dominican as we headed to the final five minutes. Peterson drove into the paint and scored with the foul for an old fashioned 3-point play.

The game went back and forth for the next two minutes when Carley-Hilliard scored five straight for the Sealions to give them the 71-67 lead. PLNU extended the lead to seven from the free-throw line as the game headed into the final minute. Cedeno drove and dished it to Camryn Figueroa in the corner for 3-points to cut the deficit to four with 54.7 seconds remaining, but the Sealions sealed it from the charity stripe.

Dominican will host Biola on Saturday for the annual Youth Night at the Conlan Center. The tip is set for 5:30 p.m. PST with live stats and video available online.