Box Score Despite being down by 15 with 6:55 to play, The Master's women's basketball team fought back and had a chance to defeat No. 10 Vanguard on the road in the closing seconds.
But a key block by Lions' All-American Melissa Akulla sealed the Lady Mustangs' fate with a 65-64 loss Saturday night in Costa Mesa, Calif.
TMU (13-2, 1-1 GSAC) went on a 20-6 run over the next 5:37 to get to within one with 1:18 to play.
Nicole Chuang scored eight points in a span of 1:07, including back-to-back 3-pointers to put the Lady Mustangs in a position to win it.
A Vanguard layup put the Lions back up by three, but a
Marin Lenz layup with 33 seconds to play set the stage for the drama.
Nicole Chuang, who scored nine points in that final quarter and was clearly the hot hand late, drove to the basket with three seconds to play for the win. But Akullu made her block to preserve the VU victory.
"That one hurt," said TMU Head Coach Lisa Zamroz. "To come back the way we did and then not have it go our way is a tough pill to swallow. Could not be more proud of the effort and belief to fight our way back with a chance to win on the final possession."
The Master's hurt themselves in the first quarter, committing eight turnovers. Yet the Lions only held a 14-11 lead. The Lady Mustangs controlled the ball much better in the second quarter and shot 50% from the field, while limiting the Lions to 28%, to take a 29-24 lead to the locker room.
The difference was clearly the third quarter. Vanguard came out of the break with the plan to get the ball to Akullu, who scored 16 points in the quarter, to flip the table on TMU and go up by eight 47-39 going into the final frame. That lead grew to 15 before the late-game charge by TMU.
"That third quarter was our downfall," Zamroz said. "We couldn't score and Akulu had her way with us inside. It wasn't our best game all around but somehow we found a way to stay in the game. It's motivating and makes us better. We're thankful for the opportunity to grow and learn. Lots of basketball ahead of us."
Chuang finished with a team-high 18 points followed by a career high-tying 16 from
Kelly Lotz.
Lexi Hernandez led the team with nine rebounds while Maddie Cooke added four more blocks to her NAIA-leading total.
The Master's will be back on the road Thursday as they travel to Arizona to take on the OUAZ Spirit. Game time is set for 4:30 p.m. PT.
