MERCED, Calif. – The University of California, Merced women's basketball team knocked off league-leading and defending California Pacific Conference Champion University of Antelope Valley 75-59 on Saturday afternoon inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium.
The Bobcats (8-15, 7-9) win was their fifth straight home win and their 75 points are tied for the third most in a game this season.
Leilani Blecha and Jazzy Beltran led five Bobcats in double figures with 16 points each. Blecha's output was a Cal Pac career-high, while Beltran's marked a new career-high overall.
Blecha hit four three-pointers and shot 57% from downtown. She provided three steals on the defensive end.
Beltran splashed three triples for the second straight game and made 3-5 long balls overall off the bench.
Nicole Lukito finished with 12 points, nine rebounds, three assists, and a block. She shot 85% (6-7) from the free throw line.
Sarina Nagra had ten points and three assists, while Megan Williams scored 10 points on 5-8 shooting and grabbed six rebounds. Nagra also blocked a shot.
Imani Johnson stuffed the stat sheet with nine points, a career-high tying eight rebounds, three assists, and three steals.
UC Merced set the tone early scoring the first six points of the game and started with a 22-5 run overall across the first eight minutes in a wire-to-wire win. Blecha and Beltran combined to shoot 100% (4-4) from three to start, while the Bobcats defense forced ten UAV turnovers in the eight-minute stretch. The Pioneers didn't get a shot off until their fifth possession of the game.
UC Merced led 24-9 going into the second quarter and held an advantage between 11-17 points for the entire frame. UAV cut the Bobcats lead down to eleven with three minutes to play before intermission, but Williams answered with four straight points and then Lukito followed a UAV jumper with a three-point play to give UC Merced a 39-23 lead at halftime.
The Bobcats lead was slowly cut to single digits approximately five minutes into the third quarter and was down to seven points at 42-35 shortly after that. Blecha followed with five straight points to get the lead back up to 10+ points and then hit another three-pointer a couple minutes later to extend the Bobcats lead back to 17 points at 54-37. Lukito scored the Bobcats next six points and her team led 60-39 heading to the final frame.
The Bobcats also led by 21 points at 67-46 with 7:55 left in the game. UAV gave one more push to get the Bobcats lead down to eleven points before Johnson hit a key three-pointer from the wing that stopped a 9-0 UAV run with 3:54 remaining. UC Merced allowed just one UAV point the rest of the way on their way to a 75-59 win.
UC Merced finished the night shooting 45.6% from the field, 47.1% (8-17) from three-point land, and 60% from the charity stripe. The Bobcats three-point field goal percentage was their second highest of the year.
The Bobcats also forced 21 UAV turnovers and turned those into 21 points. UC Merced has forced 20+ turnovers five times this season, three times in Cal Pac play.
UC Merced's win over UAV was their first since January 17, 2022, snapping a three-game losing skid against the Pioneers. The Bobcats win also snapped a three-game losing streak overall.
UC Merced has won five straight home games dating back to January 18.
Up next, the Bobcats will host Park University Gilbert on Thursday, February 15 at 5:30pm inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium in Merced, Calif.
