CLAREMONT, Calif. - In a game that featured 31 lead changes, the 31st came with 0.8 seconds left as Shea Joko made a three-pointer from the top of the key to give the Pomona-Pitzer women's basketball team a 66-65 win over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Saturday evening at Roberts Pavilion.
The loss was the first of the season for CMS in conference play, as it slips to 14-4 overall and 8-1 in conference, while Pomona-Pitzer moves to 11-7 overall and 6-3 in league play.
Caleigh Edwards led the Athenas with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while
Katie Resendiz added 17 points.
Resendiz gave CMS a 40-35 lead in the opening minute of the second half, before Emily Lee answered with two straight three-pointers to put Pomona-Pitzer ahead 41-40 with 8:33 to go in the third, and the game stayed a one-possession contest within three points the rest of the way.
Edwards gave CMS a 57-56 lead with 1:05 left in the third, but Joko was able to beat the buzzer to give Pomona-Pitzer a 59-57 edge heading into the fourth. The Sagehens outscored CMS 24-20 in the third quarter, and the fourth quarter saw a defensive battle, with the Athenas outscoring Pomona-Pitzer just 8-7, a margin which was 8-4 before the final basket.
Payton Sugar started the fourth with a three-pointer on the first possession to put CMS ahead 60-59, and Joko scored on a short jumper in the paint with 9:08 left to make it 61-60 Pomona-Pitzer. Resendiz drove for a lay-up with 7:48 to go to put CMS up 62-61, and the Sagehens eventually tied it 63-63 with 3:37 to play.
Two CMS free throws made it 65-63, before the winning three-pointer from Joko, which hit off the front rim, off the backboard and fell through. After calling a timeout to advance the ball with 0.8 seconds left, CMS nearly designed a perfect play on a backdoor lob, but the Athenas couldn't quite squeeze off the shot under the backboard as time expired.
CMS remains in first place in the SCIAC despite the loss, and will look to maintain its status atop the league when it hosts La Verne on Wednesday night at 7 p.m.
