Women’s Basketball Wins Big in First Regular Season Game
Santa Clara University’s women’s basketball team could not have started off their season any better, with a 73-60 win over the UC Riverside Highlanders this past Monday. Picking up right where they left off last year—with the second-best record in the West Coast Conference and a second-round appearance in the Women’s Basketball Invitational Tournament—they set the tone early in this game. The team, led by three seniors—Malia Latu, Lauren Grover, and Olivia Pollerd—who individually led the Broncos with 21 points, showed up when the Broncos needed a critical momentum shift.
The Broncos started the game on a high note with a 9-2 run, with senior Olivia Pollerd scoring five shots in a row. The Broncos finished the first quarter with a comfortable 19-11 lead. Although, some of the momentum from the first half trickled away as the first few minutes of the second quarter passed. The Highlanders scored the first 10 points of the second half, regaining the lead before the Broncos staged an impactful run. They spent the rest of the second quarter putting together a 15-4 run, finishing the half with another eight-point lead.
The start of the second half was not any different, scoring the first 10 points of the third quarter and growing their lead to 21 points in the fourth, a victory seemed close. The end of the game only came with one more challenge. The Highlanders strung together nine straight points to cut the lead to 12, but good leadership by Michael Floyd, interim head coach, allowed the Broncos to prevail past the Highlanders. He is not new to this Bronco team, having assisted former head coach Bill Carr for eight seasons before Carr stepped down a few weeks ago.
The Broncos showed leadership and discipline through the game’s highs and lows, both offensively and defensively. Holding all but one Highlander to double-digit points and having four of their own score double-digits demonstrates the two-way ability of this team. Clearly, the Broncos can win, and this is just the start of a must-watch season.