REDLANDS, Calif. – The University of Redlands Women's Basketball team ended the Bulldog-Panther Classic Saturday night falling to No. 11 Wheaton College (Ill.) 69-57.
The Maroon and Grey saw their winning streak come to an end as they drop to 2-1, while Wheaton remains perfect on the season at 6-0. The Thunder were pushed by the Bulldogs all night and saw their preseason national ranking of No. 11 in Division III according to D3Hoops.com put to the test.
Redlands outplayed Wheaton for 35:00 minutes and held a late lead at 52-48 at the 8:22 mark in the 4th Quarter, but couldn't hold on as the Thunder would go on a 17-2 run to go on top 63-54. Angelina Roque (San Diego, CA) would add a jumper to cut the deficit to seven, but six straight by the Thunder after that would secure the road win.
Alyssa Downs (South San Francisco, CA) went off for UR finishing with 18 points on 6-of-18 shooting, while knocking down four triples. Roque provided a 15-point effort along with four rebounds and two assists and Chyanne Pagkalinawan (Valencia, CA) put up 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting coupled with six rebounds, and four assists. A rare non double digit offensive night from Hannah Jerrier (Canton, MA) turned into a huge defensive performance for the senior as she posted a season high 14 rebounds, 12 of which came on the defensive glass, while providing five points, two assists, and four blocks.
A quick 6-0 run by the Bulldogs to start the game, which included layups from Jerrier and Roque capped off with a jumper from Downs would be answered by Wheaton with their own run of eight straight that led to them taking a 15-10 lead into the 2nd quarter. That advantage grew to six early, but was short-lived as UR would battle back with a 10-1 run that gave them a 22-19 lead. During the momentum shift, Jordan Smith (Tustin, CA) and Downs knocked down triples and Pagkalinawan would provide a pair of layups.
Redlands carried this momentum into the 3rd quarter, with the game tied up at 29-29, UR would string together nine of the first eleven points of the frame sparked by jumpers from Pagkalinawan and Roque. Wheaton weathered the storm however and would put together their own run, providing ten of the next thirteen that tied things up at 41-41. But over the final 1:39 it was all Redlands capping things off with six straight, thanks to a triple from Downs, a pair of free throws from Julia Balestreri (Pleasanton, CA), and a layup from Roque. This moved the score to 48-41 heading into the 4th.
This is where the momentum shifted. UR was able to hold the six-point edge two minutes into the quarter, but saw an ensuing 11-2 run by Wheaton that put them on top 57-54 with 5:07 to play. This lead then grew to nine and that's all the Thunder needed as they would secure the 28-9 period with free-throws down the stretch.
The Bulldogs shot 36.7% from the field, 22.7% from three-point territory, and 73% from the free-throw line. They hauled in 33 rebounds, added 16 points in the paint and held a lead as many as seven, which came at the 7:21 mark in the 3rd Quarter.
Redlands returns to the court after the Thanksgiving Break when they host Pacific (OR) on Saturday, November 27 beginning at 4:00pm.
