MERCED, Calif. - The University of California, Merced women's basketball team upset #20 Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and handed the defending Cal Pac co-regular season champion its first conference loss of the year, 70-67 on Saturday night inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium.
The Bobcats (12-11, 6-4) are now 2-1 this season against teams ranked in the NAIA DII Coaches' Top 25 Poll and have overcome double figure halftime deficits in both wins.
Haylee Owen led all scorers with a career-high 30 points, 12 coming in the final frame, and her stellar effort is good for third on the 2019-20 California Pacific Conference single-game scoring chart. Of her 12 fourth quarter points, five of them came in the final 17 seconds to maintain a narrow lead.
Owen is the fifth player in program history to go for 30 or more points but the first to accomplish that feat against a Top 25 opponent. Also, Owen is the first Bobcat with 30 in a Cal Pac game since Courtney Danna hit that mark against Cal Maritime on January 30, 2016. Owen also had three assists and shared game-high with three steals Saturday night. The sophomore guard shot 90% (9-10) from the charity stripe.
Mia Belvin posted her third straight 20+ point performance with 21 in the victory, 13 of them coming in the third quarter. Belvin, who has scored double figures in all 23 games this season, is now the first player in program history to score 20+ in three straight Cal Pac games.
Belvin also led all players with a season-high four assists and shared game-high with three steals. The conference's steals leader has multiple steals in 15 straight games and 22 of the 23 games overall.
Rainah Smith had five points and both Marisse Jackson and Deyliana Lewis added four.
Lewis grabbed a team-high eight rebounds and blocked a shot, while Smith had seven rebounds and three assists. Andrea Rogers was good for a steal and a block off the bench.
To no surprise, Owen scored on the Bobcats first possession and had the team's first nine points overall. Owen assisted on the Bobcats next bucket and the home team led 11-10 midway through the first quarter. It was tied 15-15 with two minutes left but ERAU closed the quarter on a 6-0 run as Haley Villegas and Melissa Pfeifer each buried a triple.
Cierra McClain opened the second quarter with a triple of her own to cut the deficit to 21-18. After a 6-2 ERAU run, Andrea Rogers helped bring the Bobcats within four with a tough three-point play. The two teams traded buckets and the deficit was 29-25 with three minutes to go before the intermission.
The Bobcats scored just one point the rest of the way though and a last second three from the opponents Danae Ruiz put the Eagles up 38-26 at halftime. This marked the second straight game in which the Bobcats had trailed by at least 12 points, something that hadn't happened since December 4, 2018 originally. The Bobcats lost to BenU Mesa on Thursday night, but weren't going to be denied by Embry-Riddle and would chip away at the deficit sooner rather than later.
Head coach Sarah Hopkins-Chery's team opened the third quarter on an 11-2 run and the first eight of those points were poured in by Belvin. The Bobcats pulled within a possession during the offensive surge but quickly fell back behind by eight at 45-37.
Soon after, a Belvin triple sparked an 11-0 run and the Bobcats grabbed a 46-45 lead which marked their first of the night since the 4:32 mark of the first quarter. Marisse Jackson extended the lead to three points at 50-47 with a basket off the window. Owen added a point to the margin at 52-48 following a Belvin steal and the home team brought a 54-50 lead into the final period. The Bobcats shot 60% (9-15) in the third quarter while limiting Embry-Riddle to just 27% (4-15).
The Bobcats came up empty on their first four possessions of the fourth quarter but Belvin managed to get to the charity stripe and then knocked down a jumper at the 7:00 mark to tie the game 57-57.
Owen and Rogers combined to tally three consecutive steals on the other end to allow the Bobcats to get out in transition and build a 61-57 lead midway through the quarter.
Tied 61-61 with just under two minutes to go, Owen buried a triple but Embry-Riddle countered for a 64-64 tie.
It remained locked at 64 for the next 60 seconds and with under a minute to go, Belvin earned a trip to the foul line and made one of two shots to record what would be the final lead change of the night. A possession later after a defensive stop, Owen made a tough runner from the right block to go up 67-64 with 17 seconds left. The Bobcats led 70-67 with six seconds left and needing a stop to win in regulation, Owen defended a triple from the Eagles leading scorer, Haley Villegas, and Smith grabbed the rebound to secure the upset.
It was the largest comeback win since February 14, 2019 against No. 10 University of Antelope Valley. The Bobcats were down by 14 in that one and the win over UAV also happened to be the highest ranked win in program history.
Overall, the Bobcats shot 39% (24-61) from the field, 33% (7-21) from downtown and 79% (15-19) from the charity stripe.
The Bobcats outrebounded Embry-Riddle 39-35 and turned 14 opponent turnovers into 13 points. The Bobcats committed 12 turnovers, their lowest total since January 4 in a win over Pacific Union College.
Other notables include 18 second chance points.
Looking ahead, the Bobcats host Simpson University on Senior Night scheduled for Thursday, February 13. Following a pregame ceremony honoring seniors Mia Belvin, Shelby Bohlmann and Kylee Scheib, Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30pm inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium.
