The University of Redlands women's basketball team welcomed Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) opponent Pomona-Pitzer Colleges to Currier Gym on Saturday evening. Amidst an evenly-matched contest, senior forward Reyna Ta'amu (Lakewood, CA) did her part by leading the team with 16 points as she eclipsed the 1,000-point mark in the Bulldogs' 64-56 SCIAC victory.
Early in the game, senior forward Allison Siksnus (Placentia, CA) pulled up for a nice three-pointer off of senior guard Caitlyn Dixon's (Seattle, WA) assist to make it 5-2 for the Bulldogs.
The teams traded buckets, which resulted in a knotted score at 11 apiece.
After Redlands sent in fresh feet, first-year guard Lindsay Kilgore (Mira Loma, CA) made her presence immediately known by tossing up a trey-ball to put Redlands in the lead once again. Senior guard Courtney Chen (La Canada, CA) rounded out the first quarter with a free throw and a jumper to put the Maroon and Gray in front, 17-13, through the first 10 minutes.
Kilgore started the second quarter off strong by dropping her second basket from downtown off of a nice pass from first-year guard Alyssa Lee (Monterey Park, CA), giving the Bulldogs a seven-point lead less than a minute in. With 8:38 to go, first-year forward Camille Mosley (Riverside, CA) kept things rolling with a jumper on Redlands' next possession for a nine-point spread, which also marked the home team's biggest lead of the night.
Although the Sagehens went on an 11-8 run to close out the second quarter, Redlands held onto a 30-24 advantage at the break.
Pomona-Pitzer continued to narrow the gap but a three-pointer from Dixon at 8:09 reestablished the five-point lead. Ta'amu, Siksnus, Chen, Lacey, and first-year forward Kellis Dack (Vancouver, WA) supplied the next nine points to keep Redlands ahead at 43-38 through the end of the third.
Ta'amu inched her way closer to the scoring milestone by converting the opening basket of the fourth frame. At the 8:57-minute mark, Ta'amu laid it up in traffic for the bucket and her 1,000th career point as a Bulldog. Siksnus provided the assist on the historic play to make the score 47-41.
Despite the amazing moment, the Bulldogs needed to stay focused, as the Sagehens remained close on their heels. This rejuvenated Ta'amu, as she went on to score nine points in the remainder of the game. Lacey also contributed to the win, staying cool at the line while going 5-for-6 from the charity stripe in the last 55 seconds of the game en route to the significant 64-56 SCIAC victory.
Ta'amu etched her name into the Redlands history books by taking the ninth spot in career points with 1,005 thus far. She also led the team tonight with 16 points, while Siksnus and Lacey followed close behind with 14 and 13 points, respectively. Siksnus also had a team-high nine rebounds.
Redlands (12-10, 7-6 SCIAC) hosts the University of La Verne Leopards on Wednesday, February 7, for Cancer Awareness Night in Currier Gym. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m.
