SRJC 67, Folsom Lake College 84
Heading into Tuesday night's game at Folsom Lake College, the Bear Cubs (18-4, 8-2) knew they were in for an uphill battle against the host Falcons (21-2, 10-1), the top-ranked team in the North. Jordan Washington's 3-point play on a putback got the Bear Cubs on the scoreboard first two minutes into the contest. Twenty-four seconds later Lexi Peters tied the score with her own 3-point play. The Bear Cubs made their next five shots without a miss—four field goals by Washington and a 3-pointer by Elle Picard—to take a 14-5 lead at the 5:12 mark. Jada Tupou drew a shooting foul five seconds later and made both free throws. Picard's drive that ended with a 4-foot floater was quickly followed by Tupou's basket. Nyah Fortune's 3-pointer with 2:45 on the clock cut the Falcons' deficit to 12-16. In the remaining 2:45 the Bear Cubs added four points on Hailey Webb's 20-footer and Washington's drive, while the Falcons tallied four points on one free throw by Fortune and a 3-pointer by Ursula Chen for a 20-16 Bear Cub lead.
The Bear Cubs made their first three shots in the opening three minutes of the second quarter—Caitlin Baldwin's 3-pointer, Elle Picard's drive, and her 3-pointer—to stretch their lead to 28-19. After Ava Schraeder hit a 3-pointer, Kaia Eubanks scored on a putback, and then Nyah Fortune sank a field goal to cut the Bear Cubs' lead to 30-24 at the 5:30 mark. During the next two minutes Eubanks banked in a fast break layup off of Hailey Webb's long pass and also dropped in a 4-footer. For the Falcons Jada Tupou made two baskets in a row. With 3:01 on the clock the Bear Cubs were in front 34-28. Beginning with five points by Ursula Chen and ending with six by Lexi Peters, including a scoring drive just before the buzzer sounded, the Falcons ended the quarter with a 14-0 run to take the lead for good as the half ended with the hosts ahead 42-34.
The Falcons scored five points in the first minute of the third quarter. Caitlin Baldwin took the Bear Cubs' first shot of the period 24 seconds later and swished the 3-pointer. Nyah Fortune drained two 3-pointers in a row before Kaia Eubanks scored on a cut and assist from Elle Picard at the 7:43 mark. During the next three minutes, the Falcons added a field goal, two free throws, and a 3-pointer by Casey Dreiling, while Sydney Martin scored four points on an 18-footer and a 1-footer. The Bear Cubs finished the period with eight more points on Shasta Vlasak's 3-point play on a baseline drive, three free throws by Jordan Washington, and her putback. The Falcons tallied 10 points, including a 3-pointer each by Fortune and Lexi Peters to widen their lead to 70-51.
Jordan Washington started the scoring in the fourth quarter when she intercepted a pass near the Falcons' key on their opening possession and dribbled down court to bank in the layup. The Falcons scored the next five points on a basket by Sammy Schuler and a 3-pointer by Nyah Fortune. With 7:13 on the clock Washington drew a shooting foul and sank both free throws. Lexi Peters connected on a 3-pointer, and nearly two minutes later Elle Picard hit a 10-foot pullup jumper. Kelis Powell drained a 3-pointer at the 4:47 mark. The Bear Cubs scored seven unanswered points on Sydney Martin's 2-footer off of Hailey Webb's assist, Washington's 3-point play on a leaning 4-foot bank shot, and her two free throws with 2:19 left. Casey Dreilingsank the Falcons' final field goal 20 seconds after that. Shasta Vlasak tossed in a 3-footer with 1:19 remaining. Jasmine Clee went to the free throw line with 54 seconds to go and made one free throw. Madyson Carson did the same with 42 seconds left, to make the final score 84-67 in favor of the Falcons.
The Bear Cubs got off to a good start, but couldn't maintain their momentum once the Falcons got hot, started effectively pushing the pace, and sinking shot after shot. The Bear Cubs were able to score six more points than their average on 26 out of 59 (44%) shots. But they only made 29% (4 out of 14) from beyond the arc. The Falcons were much more proficient and comfortable shooting on their home court as they made 30 out of 58 shots (52%), including 14 out of 26 (54%) from 3-point land. Three Falcons reached double figures: Lexi Peters with 25 points, including four 3-pointers, Nyah Fortune 18 with five 3-pointers, and Jada Tupou 17.
Jordan Washington led the Bear Cubs with 27 points, including 9 out of 10 free throws. Elle Picard was the only other Bear Cub in double figures with 12 points. Kaia Eubanks added 8 points, Caitlin Baldwin and Sydney Martin 6 each, Shasta Vlasak 5, Hailey Webb 2, and Madyson Carson 1. Kaia Eubanks grabbed 8 rebounds and Sydney Martin 7. Elle Picard passed for 4 assists.