Feb. 16, 2008
Box Score
Stockton, Calif. - Before a record setting crowd of 1,815, the Pacific women's basketball team defeated UC Irvine, 67-50, on Saturday, Feb. 16 as 'Pacific Played Pink' in support of Breast Cancer Awareness.
The victory lifted the Tigers to 11-14 overall and 6-6 in the Big West Conference. UC Irvine, meanwhile, fell to 6-20 on the season and 2-10 in conference play.
The Tigers and Anteaters played back and forth basketball for much of the first half with neither team building a lead of more than four points through the first 13 minutes. Holding a 22-21 lead at the seven minute mark, UC Irvine surged ahead by five as Mary Has hit one of two free throws, then Kirian Ishizaki nailed the Anteater only three of the first half to boost UC Irvine's lead to 26-21.
Pacific held the Anteater scoreless through the final 4:54 to cut the deficit to a single point behind two free throws from sophomore Jasmine Dana (Bakersfield, Calif.) and a jumper by junior Karen Dawkins (Colorado Springs, Colo.) to send the game into the break at 26-25.
Two free throws from junior Amy VanHollebeke (San Diego, Calif.) to open the second half gave the Tigers the lead at 27-26, but UC Irvine kept the game close until midway through the period.
Trailing 44-42 with 9:29 left in the game, the Tigers seized control behind a 14-0 run. VanHollebeke got the Tigers rolling on her first three pointer of the game to put Pacific back in front. Senior Kelsey Lavender (Lake Oswego, Ore.) notched the next five points for the Tigers on a short jumper and a three pointer. Sophomore Emma Head (San Diego, Calif.) got in the act with two free throws, then Van Hollebeke and junior Janae Young (Sacramento, Calif.) capped Tigers' string on a layup and jumper to give Pacific a 56-44 lead with 2:54 to play.
The Tigers went on to earn the 67-50 victory.
Young led all scorers with 17 points, while VanHollebeke finished with 15 points and Dawkins posted 12 points. Young also finished with 12 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season. Dawkins also delivered her fourth double-double of the year with 11 rebounds.
Stephanie Duda led UC Irvine with 11 points in the loss.
The attendance of 1,815 set the single-game high for a Pacific women's basketball contest, breaking the mark of 1,258 in 2003 when the Tigers defeated Cal State Northridge, 69-48, on Feb. 8.
The Tigers return to the court on Thursday, Feb. 21 when Pacific travels to Santa Barbara, Calif. to take on the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos at 7 p.m. in the Thunderdome.
