SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Alaiyah San Juan surpassed 1,000 points for her career as she led Dominican women's basketball to a 70-66 victory Saturday afternoon over Menlo at the Conlan Recreation Center.

San Juan finished with 23 points, seven assists and two steals for the Penguins (9-8, 3-3 PacWest). Abby Cooper added a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Taylor Linzie finished with nine points and 16 boards. Alberte Frisch led the Oaks (5-7, 2-4 PacWest) with a game-high 27 points to go with four assists. The difference in the game was 3-point shooting as Dominican knocked down 31.6% of its shots, while holding Menlo to 20% shooting beyond the arc.

San Juan was on fire to start the game as she knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to spark a 10-2 run and give the Penguins some breathing room. The Oaks battled back as Laila Saenz knocked down a shot behind the arc to close back within one with 4:31 remaining in the period. San Juan found Cooper under the hoop in transition for an easy layup to spark a 6-point run that pushed Dominican in front 18-11 heading into the final two minutes of the first quarter. 

San Juan knocked down her third 3-pointer of the game early in the second quarter to extend the lead to eight, but Erin Sellers scored five consecutive in a 7-0 run that closed the Menlo deficit to 27-25 with 5:55 remaining in the half. After trading baskets over the next few possessions, San Juan found Linzie under the hoop and she finished through contact for an old fashioned 3-point play. Linzie then stole the ball and San Juan dished the ball out to Cooper in transition for a 3-pointer from the left corner to take a 36-28 lead with four minutes remaining. After a San Juan free-throw pushed the lead to nine, Saenz knocked down a 3-pointer for the Oaks and Jordyn Rosette hit a short jumper at the buzzer to close back within four at the half. 

Menlo was able to claw its way back to within a single point twice, but Dominican continued to answer on the other end to hold its lead. San Juan scored five and added a steal in a 12-0 run that Andraya Perez capped with a 3-pointer from the left corner that pushed the lead to 56-43 with 2:07 left in the third. The Oaks scored the next six points to close back within single digits with the Penguins taking a 58-49 lead into the final period of play. 

Cooper and San Juan each had a layup to begin the fourth pushing the lead back to the game-high of 13 within the first two minutes, but Menlo slowly chipped away at the lead. The offense completely abandoned Dominican over the final 3:24 of play and the Oaks took advantage as Frisch scored four quick points to spark a 9-0 run that closed the gap to 68-66 with 42 seconds left on the clock. A pair of misses from the charity stripe gave Menlo the chance to tie or take the lead with nine seconds remaining, but Jordyn Rosette's reverse layup was off target and Mikayla Amoroso secured the rebound. Alex Salise sealed the game with a pair of free throws for the Penguins.

Dominican will hit the road to take on Fresno Pacific on Wednesday at 2 p.m. PST at the Special Events Center.