Saturday, March 12, 2016
by Alaska Anchorage Athletic Communications

AZUSA, Calif. – Jessica Madison scored 17 points and Alysha Devine scored 13 of her 15 points in the second half and overtime Saturday to lead Alaska Anchorage to an 83-79 victory over Cal Baptist in a battle of nationally top 5-ranked clubs in the NCAA Div. II West Regional semifinals at Felix Event Center.

The 2nd-seeded and 4th-ranked Seawolves (35-2) also got 10 points and seven rebounds from senior forward Megan Mullings to erase an 8-point second-half deficit and reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2012. UAA will face UC San Diego in Monday’s regional final at 6 p.m. Alaska Daylight Time.

The 3rd-seeded and 5th-ranked Lancers got game-highs of 23 points and eight assists from junior guard guard Kamille Diaz, plus 18 points and 12 rebounds from forward Cassidy Mihalko, who played the entire 45 minutes.

“That was a heck of a basketball game. I think everyone got a good sweat in during that one, whether you were in the stands or coaching or playing,” said UAA head coach Ryan McCarthy. “I’ve got to give a lot of credit to Cal Baptist. They have a very well coached team and had a good game plan for us. I was just really proud of our ladies for showing a lot of heart down the stretch.”

After a 100-point pace through the first five minutes, the teams were tied 21-21 at the end of the first quarter, and the Lancers took a 39-36 lead into the locker room.

UAA retook the lead early in the third quarter before the defending West Region champions got hot from outside, taking a 57-49 advantage on Diaz’s three-pointer with 3:22 on the clock. CBU led 61-53 when Courtney Nelson started the fourth quarter with a layup, but Mullings scored inside and Keiahnna Engel fed Sierra Afoa for a three-pointer to make it a one-possession game.

Madison pulled things even at 65-65 with a pair of free throws, and Devine gave UAA a 70-67 lead with a three-pointer at the 1:21 mark. After the Lancers answered right back with a trey from Mihalko, UAA point guard Kiki Robertson scored her only two points of the night when she penetrated and earned two successful free throws with 18 seconds left.

But Diaz got free for a layup inside, and both teams missed chances to win it in the final 10 seconds of regulation.

Mullings and Devine scored field goals early in the overtime to stake the Seawolves to a 76-74 edge before Diaz answered with yet another trey. Madison got free inside for layup, however, and Mullings grabbed a defensive rebound on Mihalko’s ensuing layup attempt.

With the shot clock running down, senior Jenna Buchanan got free for a short jumper in the lane to make it 80-77, only to have Diaz respond with a layup at the 18-second mark.

The Lancers fouled senior guard Christina Davis, who calmly nailed both free throws, and Mullings grabbed another board on a short miss by CBU’s Megan Freer. Buchanan then hit the second of two free throws with 2.5 seconds remaining for the final score.

“I guess I really wasn’t hitting in the first half, but I knew they would fall eventually,” said Devine, who shot 1 of 4 before halftime and 6 of 9 after the break. “And thankfully they did.”

Devine and Madison also added four steals apiece, while Buchanan finished with 10 points and four rebounds.

Senior guard Keiahnna Engel added five points, six rebounds and three assists, and Davis finished with seven points and two assists.

NOTES: Mullings surpassed 1,000 career points on her first bucket of the night and now stands 15th on the school’s scoring list with 1,009 … UAA improved to 19-15 all-time in NCAA play … Saturday’s meeting was the first ever between UAA and CBU, which moved to the NCAA Div. II ranks just two seasons ago … the Lancers were the defending NCAA Div. II runners-up after losing last year’s title game to California, Pa. … UAA joined top-seeded Azusa Pacific as the only teams to defeat CBU this season.