HILO, Hawaii – Senior forward Natalie Diaz kept Dominican women's basketball ahead for most of the game with an impressive performance down low, but it was the Penguins (19-3, 16-2 PacWest) defense in the final period that lifted them to a 76-50 victory Sunday night over the University of Hawai'i at Hilo.

Diaz tallied her ninth 30-point game of the season with a double-double of 33 points and 14 rebounds. She added three assists, two blocks and two steals for Dominican. Senior guard Alanna Scott added 12 points and four assists, while Vanessa Cruz chipped in eight assists, seven rebounds and two steals.

Allie Navarette led the Vulcans (7-13, 4-12 PacWest) with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Malia Lee typified the offensive night for UHH with 11 points on 3-for-5 shooting from behind the arc. The Vulcans shot 58 percent from behind the arc in the first half to keep the game close. 

However, the Penguins were able to limit them in the second half and they finished shooting 32.8 percent from the field and 36 percent from 3-point range. Dominican held a 30-8 advantage in points in the paint over Hilo, shooting 43.9 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from behind the arc.

After a back-and-forth game through the first three quarters, the Vulcans took a 55-54 lead on a Lee 3-pointer in the first minute of the fourth as they looked to have the momentum in their favor. The Penguins had other plans as they tightened the screws defensively holding Hilo to five points over the final nine minutes of the game. Cruz and Scott hit back-to-back 3-pointers to jump-start the inside-out offensive attack and they reeled off 24 points in the period to pull away.

The Vulcans found their offensive stroke early knocking down 50 percent from behind the arc to build a 21-14 lead with 2:18 left in the period. The Penguins seized the momentum from there as Sydney Larocca came off the bench and cut through the lane for a layup. Diaz grabbed an offensive board underneath the hoop on the next possession and nailed a turnaround jumper with the shot clock under five seconds. Anjelica Collins stole a pass after the ensuing inbounds and immediately laid it in with Larocca ending the run she began by putting her defender in a blender for a layup to make it 22-21 heading to the second.

Larocca and Diaz continued to power the offense combining for the first four points of the second quarter to extend the run to 12-0. UHH was able to slow the Dominican momentum as Amber Vaughn and Maddie Beck each knocked down 3-pointers to make it 28-27 with 7:20 left in the half. The Vulcans were able to take back the lead at 31-30 and the lead began to change hands frequently over the final five minutes. Diaz proved too much of a force down low scoring all nine of the Penguins' points in the final three minutes, capping off the half spinning past a defender for a layup to send Dominican into the locker room leading 44-41.

Diaz kicked a ball to Collins in the corner for a 3-pointer early in the third and Diaz followed with a layup on the next possession as a 6-0 run pushed the lead to 50-43 in the first five minutes. UHH was able to make the necessary adjustments and Alyssa Movchan capped a 9-2 run with a 3-pointer to tie it up at 52 heading into the final period. 

The Penguins return to their home court Saturday to take on Fresno Pacific at 2 p.m. PST at the Conlan Center. Dominican will have a pink day as part of the Women's Basketball Coaches Associations' Play4Kay month to raise money for breast cancer research. Live stats and video will be available online.