In a grind-it-out game that came down to the wire, the No. 1 University of Redlands women's basketball team outlasted No. 4 Pomona-Pitzer Colleges, 53-51, at home in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) semifinal on Thursday night. With the win, the Bulldogs will meet No. 3 Claremont Mudd-Scripps Colleges for a SCIAC Championship showdown on Saturday, February 29, at 5 p.m.

Although the Sagehens maintained a slight lead through the first six minutes of the quarter, the Bulldogs remained on the doorsteps and never allowed Pomona-Pitzer more than a three-point advantage.

Momentum began to shift at the 4:50-mark as the Maroon and Gray went on an 8-4 run to close out the period. Junior guard Alyssa Lee (Monterey Park, CA) lit the spark, hitting a deep jumper to overtake the lead at 10-9. On the Sagehen's next possession, sophomore forward Hannah Jerrier (Canton, MA) stuffed the offense with a block that eventually led to points for Redlands. Sophomore guard Alyssa Downs (South San Francisco, CA) then stepped back and sank one from downtown to give the Bulldogs a 14-11 lead with two minutes to go. 

First-year guard Marisa Urbano-Sedlund (San Diego, CA) and Downs combined for two jumpers in the final minutes to give Redlands an 18-13 advantage heading into the second. Junior forward Kellis Dack (Vancouver, WA) impressed with four boards and two assists in the final four minutes as well.

Urbano-Sedlund kept it going in the second quarter with a jumper to give the Bulldogs their eventual biggest lead of the night in a tight game at 20-13 with 9:49 left to go.

Pomona-Pitzer nearly closed the gap but a timely jumper from senior guard Cassandra Lacey (Victorville, CA) help the Bulldogs hold on to a 22-18 lead at 6:35.

The teams went back and forth over the next four minutes only making one basket apiece, until the 1:59-minute mark. After two offensive boards for Redlands, Lacey stayed strong in the paint for a layup and was fouled on the play. She made her subsequent shot from the charity stripe for the successful three-point play and a 27-20 advantage.

However, Pomona-Pitzer narrowed the deficit once again, as the Bulldogs entered halftime with a narrow 28-25 lead.

Although the Sagehens knotted things up at 28-28 with 7:24 left in the third, the tie didn't last long as Lee swiped a quick steal and took it to house for a fast-break layup and the lead. Despite Lee making another key layup, Pomona-Pitzer matched the buckets with two treys to put the Bulldogs down by two, 32-34 with 5:29 remaining.

Jerrier subsequently put on a show on both ends of the court in the final minutes of the third, registering four boards, four points, a steal, and a block to keep things close. With time about to expire, Lee raced the ball to Redlands' end of the court, cutting through traffic to make a buzzer-beater layup to head into the final quarter with a 40-38 lead.

First-year guard Angelina Roque (San Diego, CA) kicked off the fourth-period scoring for the Bulldogs to spread the gap to four-points at 42-38.

Right as the Sagehens equalized the score at 42-apiece, Urbano-Sedlund found Downs for a huge three-pointer to make it 45-42. And although Pomona-Pitzer traded blows with a jumper, Downs didn't miss a beat with another trey to make it 48-46 with 5:42 left in the game. After another tie and jumper from Lacey, the Bulldogs still held on to a slight, two-point lead.

At the 1:12-minute mark, Jerrier intercepted the ball for a steal and then grabbed an offensive board and was fouled on the play. She stayed calm at the line and made both of her chances from the charity stripe to pull ahead by four, 52-48. But Pomona-Pitzer would not let up, coming within one at 51-52 with only 25 seconds left in the contest.

Jerrier grabbed another rebound before Downs made a free-throw to make it 53-51 with 22 ticks left on the clock.

Stealthy defense in the final seconds of the game forced the Sagehens to take an unbalanced shot and miss for the Bulldogs to take a thrilling 53-51 win.

For the game, Downs led the offense with 19 points, including three triples. Jerrier tallied eight points to go along with her career-high of 18 rebounds. Nine of her boards came on the offensive end. She was also solid on defense with two steals and two blocks. As a team, the Bulldogs out-rebounded the Sagehens, 46-34.

With this victory the top-seeded Bulldogs (20-6, 14-2 SCIAC) will now host the No.3 the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Athenas on Saturday evening for the SCIAC Postseason Tournament Championship at 5 p.m. in Currier Gym.