SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Dominican women's basketball held on in an intense and close semifinal matchup with No. 2 Azusa Pacific for a 62-56 win in the PacWest Championships on Friday at the Conlan Recreation Center.
 
"Our focus coming out was we can't dig a hole," head coach Tim LaKose said. "Azusa Pacific is too good to go down against. We learned the lesson from earlier in the season. Credit to this team as they have played some of the best teams in the country and they are showing that they are one of the best in this region."
 
Taylor Linzie led the way for the Penguins (22-11, 14-6 PacWest) with 17 points and 14 rebounds, her second double-double of the tournament. Alex Salise came off the bench to score 12 points to go with four assists, three rebounds and a steal, while Alaiyah San Juan helped to seal the game from the line going 10-for-12 from the charity strip.  
 
"We've been here [the semifinals] the last three years so it wasn't anything new," Salise said. "We have the same goal to get the championship and we are one step closer. I'm really excited to play with this team, we just have a big heart."
 
Amayah Kirkman and Kelly Heimburger each scored 18 points for the Cougars (22-6, 16-4 PacWest) with Kirkman grabbing eight rebounds and Heimburger collecting nine boards and three blocked shots. Dominican held APU to 30.2% shooting from the floor and 24% from behind the arc.
 
In what has been a hallmark of the season, the Penguin defense led the charge early as Kaylyn Buchanon-Lamb drove to the hoop for the first basket of the game. Mikayla Amoroso hit the first 3-pointer of the game to spark a 10-0 Dominican run with Linzie scoring the final five of the sequence including an old fashioned 3-point play.
 
The Cougars shut down the interior in the second quarter and took advantage as Heimburger scored six points with a pair of free throws capping a 12-2 run to tie the game 22-22 with 1:53 remaining. Neither team could find the hoop over the final two minutes and the teams remained deadlocked at the half.
 
Salise lifted the lid off the hoop from behind the arc for the Penguins on the first shot of the second half and Linzie added another moments later to take a 29-22 lead. The teams continued to trade points for the next seven minutes with Dominican holding a two-possession advantage for much of the quarter. Salise ended the period with an acrobatic running hook shot to give Dominican a boost of momentum and send them into the fourth quarter leading 40-33.
 
Salise opened the scoring in the fourth the same way she opened the half with a 3-pointer to extend the lead to 43-33 bringing the crowd to its feet. Kirkman and Heimburg each hit 3-pointers with a nifty floater by Linzie in between as APU closed the gap to 47-41 with six minutes left on the clock. The teams continued to battle back and forth answering buckets and defensive stops with the lead staying at two possessions for the Penguins heading into the final three minutes of the game.
 
The Cougars hit a pair of 3-pointers in the final minute, but San Juan continued to hit her free throws to keep the two possession lead. Audrey Sayoc connected on a layup through contact and connected on a free throw with Elyse Mitchell stealing the inbounds and and hitting another pair from the charity stripe to close the gap to two points with 20 seconds remaining. Buchanon-Lamb was able to spring free and hit a pair of free throws and a turnover by the Cougars sealed the game for the Penguins.
 
"The fans brought a lot of energy," Linzie said. "We want to thank everyone for showing up for us and we are going to go get one for you."
 
Dominican will be back in action Saturday against the winner of No. 1 Point Loma and No. 4 Westmont at 2 p.m. PST at the Conlan Recreation Center.