Photo: Noelle Davis

PASADENA (Jan. 11, 2020) – The Caltech women's basketball team put together four exceptional quarters of basketball to sink SCIAC foe California Lutheran University, 69-63, on Wednesday evening for the program's first SCIAC victory of the season.

The Beavers took care of the Regals by holding them to under 30 percent shooting from beyond the arc, where the visitors attempted 32 of their 67 shots. Collectively, Caltech played its best team game of the season and hung with the Regals through the first half before a momentum-shifting play at the end of the third quarter energized the Beavers over the final 10 minutes. Freshman Sahana Saikumar (Arcadia, Calif. / Arcadia) picked up one of her team-best four steals with three seconds to go and found classmate Faith Pinney (Spokane, Wash. / Gonzaga Preparatory School) streaking to the basket for an easy layup as time expired. The basket put Caltech within one point of its SCIAC foe but more importantly set the Beavers up with the momentum to have a big fourth quarter.

"They wanted it, they deserved it, they got it," Head Coach Bridgette Reyes said. "Our team wasn't complacent. They took control of the game and they got the win. It was a team effort. I was proud to see how aggressive we came out in each quarter and how our players stuck to their roles and did their job."

The Caltech women gave their fans a taste of what they can do in the fourth quarter, when they outscored the Regals, 22-15, to cruise to the win. The Beavers' dynamic duo, Saikumar and senior guard Grace Peng (San Ramon, Calif. / California) led the way in the fourth, accounting for 15 of the team's 22 points over that stretch. Peng led the way with 21 points while Saikumar posted an impressive all-around line of 18 points, nine rebounds, and five assists. Senior forward Alexa Lauinger (Ortonville, Mich. / Brandon), meanwhile dominated the glass in a way like never before. Lauinger picked up 14 points and 20 rebounds, seven of which came on the offensive end, extending possessions for a Caltech team that shot 41 percent from the field, its most in a conference game this season. The senior only improved as the game wore on, as 13 of her rebounds came in the second half. She also made six of her eight free-throw attempts.

"Honestly, I'm so proud of everyone's work and determination," Lauinger said. "It hasn't been an easy season but we come with a lot of fight every night and tonight was no different."

This year marks the second year in a row the Beavers have taken out the Regals. Prior to that, Caltech had never beaten Cal Lutheran in women's basketball. While Peng and Saikumar led the scoring department with a pair of big bounce-back games, the team contribution ultimately propelled the women's basketball team to victory. Pinney stole the ball three times to go with her seven points while junior guard Lauren Suezaki (San Ramon, Calif. / California) gave the Beavers six points, including the game's first two baskets. Freshman guard Helen Siavelis (Arlington Heights, Ill. / Prospect) came off the bench to give the Beavers a bit three-pointer late in the game while classmate Charley Lafayette (Toronto, Ontario, Can. / Branksome Hall) made the most of her time with a key rejection beneath the basket in the first half. A pair of free throws from Lauinger made it a three-possession game with eighteen seconds to go, a deficit the Regals would find insurmountable.

"Going into the fourth, I told our team to take what's theirs," Reyes said. "We haven't been in this position in a while, and in moments like this, the goal is to calm your team down but also make sure they don't get complacent and are still attacking the basket. Now that they've seen what they can do when they compete and play together, nights like tonight can hopefully be the bar for us going forward the rest of the season."

Reyes and the Beavers will look to keep the momentum rolling on Saturday, Jan. 18 when they travel to the University of Redlands for a 7 p.m. game.

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