LANCASTER, Calif. – The University of California, Merced women's basketball team fell to Cal Pac regular-season champion University of Antelope Valley 97-75 on Saturday night at the Pioneer Event Center.

Despite the loss, the Bobcats (11-13, 11-8) 75 points scored was the second highest of any Cal Pac team against the Pioneers this season.

Deyliana Lewis led UC Merced with 19 points, 16 rebounds, four blocks, three assists, and a steal. Lewis' double-double was her eighth of the year and second double-double with at least 15 points and 15 rebounds. The senior shot 71% from the floor and cashed in a career-high nine free throws while playing 40 minutes for the fourth time in the last seven games. Through 24 games, Lewis is now second in UC Merced history with 231 rebounds and eight double-doubles in a single-season.

Tiffany Nguyen scored a career-high 17 points and knocked down four three-pointers, including two in the first quarter. Her four triples overall moved her ahead of Shelby Bohlmann for eighth in program history with 53 career three-point makes.

Paloma Ramirez was good for 14 points and neared her second career double-double with nine rebounds. The freshman has now scored in double figures in four straight games and has splashed at least one triple in each outing.

Nia Smiley added nine points, four rebounds, and three assists in her first start of the season. Faith Mucheru scored eight points, sinking six foul shots.

UC Merced stayed close with UAV in the first quarter and led 17-15 with two minutes to go before trailing by a possession at the end of the period and never grabbing the lead back.

Tied 22-22 90 seconds into the second quarter, UAV surged ahead with an 18-3 run over the next five minutes to garner a 15-point advantage. UAV also led by 15 points going into the locker rooms.

The Bobcats cut the deficit down to eleven points before falling victim of another run that saw UAV blow the game open for good. The Bobcats continued to fight, earning their way to the foul line 13 times and scoring a team-high 24 points in the fourth quarter but it wasn't enough to bring the deficit down to single digits.

UC Merced finished the night shooting 39% (22-57) from the floor, 29% (6-21) from the foul line, and 61% (25-41) from the charity stripe. The Bobcats 25 made free throws was their second highest mark of the season.

UC Merced was without Damilola Sule and Victoria Farris on Saturday night.

Up next, UC Merced will host Simpson University in the regular season fianle for Senior Night on Saturday, February 18 at 5:30pm inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium.