With junior guard Mariah Barbetti-Cort (Ventura, CA) scoring a career-high 27 points, the University of Redlands blew past the Poets of Whittier College by a score of 79-59 in tonight's Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) match-up at the Graham Athletics Center.
After breaking an early five-all tie with a 10-2 run, Redlands never let go of the lead en route to its eighth conference win of the season.
Up by eight at the break, the Bulldogs outscored their opponents, 15-4, to make it a 19-point game with 13:31 left in the second stanza. A total team effort accounted for this offensive outburst, with four players chipping in three or more points during this stretch.
Whittier rallied to cut it to 12 when Brittany Aranda connected on a lay-up, but Redlands remained in control with a double-digit advantage through the entire second half.
The Bulldogs shot 50% overall, compared to the Poets' 30% display. Whittier impressed from the charity stripe, hitting 93% of its chances, but Redlands went to the line 18 more times and converted 24 attempts.
Aside from her 27 points, Barbetti-Cort provided nine rebounds and five assists for the Bulldogs. This is her 12th double-digit scoring performance of the season and her fourth with 20 or more points.
Senior forward Allison Clark (Altadena, CA) contributed 14 points, six rebounds and three assists, while junior forward Courtney Carroll (Rancho Palos Verdes, CA) came away with a team-leading 11 rebounds to go along with nine points and five assists.
Whittier's Monica Salazar scored 11 points and Aranda added 10 as the only players in double figures.
With the win, Redlands (14-7, 8-2 SCIAC) remains in a tie for first place among the SCIAC standings as co-leader Occidental College downed the University of La Verne in tonight's game.
The Bulldogs head to Thousand Oaks on Saturday for an important match against the Regals of Cal Lutheran University as part of a SCIAC doubleheader with the men. The women tip off at 5 p.m., followed by the men's showdown at approximately 7 p.m. Fans may follow the action via live web-streaming at http://www.callutheran.edu/clutube/.