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Steven Guersch

Women's Basketball Brandon Taylor, Sports Information Assistant

Eagles Earn First Win Over No. 3 Westmont Since 2011

Biola's resolute defense and a gritty performance by DeMoria White lifts Eagles to win.

Biola celebrates at midcourt after defeated No. 3 Westmont 63-54.
Box Score

HIGHLIGHTS

LA MIRADA, Calif. --- If there's one word that describes the 2016-17 Women's Basketball team it's improvement: consistent improvement from week to week and from last year to this. Energy on defense and an improved showing in the rebound battle propelled the No. 19 Eagles to the 63-54 upset win on Tuesday over No. 3 Westmont.

The 17-5 Eagles improve to 8-2 in Golden State Athletic Conference play while handing the 19-2 Warriors their first conference loss of the season at 9-1. Additionally, tonight's result is the first time Biola has defeated Westmont since Jan. 25, 2011.

"We have the upmost respect for Westmont College because of the program's consistent rankin at or around the top-5 of the NAIA Coaches' Poll," said Head Coach Alan Nakamura. "I feel that having our full bench tonight was huge for us; everyone contributed the level of defensive intensity and commitment to rebounding that we needed for the victory."

The Warriors started the game with a quick 4-0 run on a layup and two free throws from forward Aysia Shellmire. But the Eagles quickly charged back with six unanswered points of their own and eventually gained a first quarter lead they would never lose the rest of the game.

The rotation in the post for the Eagles was absolutely monumental in keeping Westmont off the board. After Shellmire's two free throws in the opening moments Sara Dougan, Joclyn Kirton and Jessica Shill neutralized the NAIA All-American forward for the rest of the half: 0-of-3 from the field and two total points over the first 20 minutes.

Shellmire leads the Warriors in scoring at 14.2 points per game, but she finished with just eight on Tuesday. Aimee Brakken led the visiting team in scoring with 20 points on 6-for-10 shooting from three. 

"I think the mental key for us in this game was that the entire team bought in and we did what we all knew we needed to do," said Dougan, who contributed six points and four rebounds. "We worked really hand for this win and I'm excited to see what is in store for this team."

Westmont scored 20 points in the first half on seven shots compared to the Eagles' 14 made field goals and 35 points. Much of the credit for disparity goes to the trio of forwards mentioned above for holding the Warriors' offense, not just Shellmire, to two points in the paint in the first two quarters and leading the Eagles' effort to out-rebound Westmont 16-to-15.

"Everyone of the team knew we really wanted this win and our grit and heart really helped us out," said Shill. "We had intensity throughout the game and that led to rebounds and stops."

In contrast to the Warriors' 14 total points in the paint, the Eagles scored 26 points on layups thanks to the work of guards Annie Park and DeMoria White to slice through the Westmont defense.

The two combined to sink seven of the Eagles' eight three-pointers in the game, while White played every minute and led the game in scoring with 22 points. This is White's fifth 20-point game over the Eagles' last six contests.

Biola would need all nine of White's third-quarter points to hold onto its cushion and keep the charging Warriors at bay. Westmont scored 17 points in both the third and fourth periods to make the game close, but a 14-point deficit headed into the final 10 minutes was too steep a hill to climb.

"Westmont came back in the second half by hitting a lot of corner three-pointers so we tried to shade the corner down the stretch," said White. "Talking on defense and fighting for rebounds was huge for us to make sure we limited them to one possession."

The fact that the Eagles maintained their intensity up to the final buzzer is indicated by Khadidja Diakite's five massive rebounds during fourth quarter clutch-time to take chances away from Westmont. Consequently, Westmont scored only eight points in the last four minutes of the game while Biola scored nine.

Annie Park's two free throws with nine seconds left sealed the win and gave Biola nine makes in 10 attempts at the charity stripe. Park finished second on the team in scoring with 16 points.

After giving tonight's win its due celebration, Biola hits the road for another tough test against No. 21 The Master's on Saturday at 5:30 p.m.
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Players Mentioned

Khadidja Diakite

#20 Khadidja Diakite

G
5' 10"
Junior
Sara Dougan

#33 Sara Dougan

F
6' 4"
Sophomore
Joclyn Kirton

#21 Joclyn Kirton

F
6' 0"
Senior
Annie Park

#1 Annie Park

G
5' 5"
Senior
Jessica Shill

#51 Jessica Shill

F
6' 3"
Sophomore
DeMoria White

#5 DeMoria White

G
5' 4"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Khadidja Diakite

#20 Khadidja Diakite

5' 10"
Junior
G
Sara Dougan

#33 Sara Dougan

6' 4"
Sophomore
F
Joclyn Kirton

#21 Joclyn Kirton

6' 0"
Senior
F
Annie Park

#1 Annie Park

5' 5"
Senior
G
Jessica Shill

#51 Jessica Shill

6' 3"
Sophomore
F
DeMoria White

#5 DeMoria White

5' 4"
Junior
G
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