This past Saturday the USF women’s basketball team played an unsuccessful game against the visiting University of San Diego Toreros at War Memorial Gym. This was the second loss to the Toreros this season for the lady Dons, who couldn’t stop USD from a 68-49 point victory.
The Toreros charged ahead early in the first half of this West Coast Conference game, as they consistently played confidently and aggressively. The first half looked promising for both teams as the score early in the game was six to five in favor of the Toreros. However, the Toreros pulled through by scoring seven straight points, making the score 12 to seven with 15 minutes remaining in the first half.
The Toreros continued their dominance and extended the score to 20 to nine before the Dons responded with an 11 to nothing run to even things up at 20, with less than six minutes to play before heading into halftime. The final five minutes of the half were intense, as the two teams fought for the lead; both teams struggled to gain the lead, as the score went back and forth going into the second half. After much fight from both the Dons and the Toreros, San Diego took charge – making the scoreboard read 28-26 going into half time.
The Dons could not keep up in the second half as the Toreros went on a six to two run over the first minute and a half of action to take a 34 to 28 lead. Senior guard Shay Rollins challenged the Toreros with an impressive 20-point effort, while also grabbing down nine rebounds, dishing out one assist, and getting two steals.
Despite her incredible efforts, San Diego went on a nine to three run that was sparked on a Kiva Herman jumper and capped off on a free throw to again give the Toreros a double-digit lead at 43-33 with less than 13 minutes to go. Herman finished the game with 21 points, which was the game high in scoring. The Toreros, now even more confident with their skills, battled through the second half to victory with a 19-point win.
Freshman guard Vania Singleterry played an extraordinary game, as she snagged her second double double in the past two weeks. Singleterry finished the game with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Freshman guard Heidi Anton scored three points for the Dons, as sophomore forward Donnisha Taylor gave the Dons six points and eight rebounds. Freshman guard Rheina Ale scored three points for the Dons as well, being one of the five Don scorers of the afternoon. Rollins and Singleterry were the only Dons to score in the double digits.
The Lady Dons will face the Portland Pilots at 7 p.m. this Thursday for their last away game of the regular season this year. They go into the game with a season record of 6-17 overall and 2-record for the West Coast Conference, facing the Portland Pilots with a season record of 12-10 overall, and 5-2 in the West Coast Conference.
