RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Four games into the PacWest season, California Baptist University found itself matched up with the early conference leader in its return from Christmas break on Wednesday in the CBU Events Center.

A fast-paced game and dominant bench play helped the Lancers wear down the shorthanded Penguins, coming away with a 94-76 victory to improve to 7-6, 4-1 in the PacWest and hand Dominican its first conference loss at 10-3, 4-1. It puts CBU in a tie with the Penguins for second place in the PacWest.

"Dominican is a really good team and we were just trying to do everything we can to slow them down," Coach Jarrod Olson said. "I think we wore them down in the second half with our depth; I think that was the biggest difference tonight, we just had more depth."

The Lancers play their next two on the road, visiting Point Loma Friday at 5:30 p.m. and Dixie State Monday at 4:30 p.m. PDT. CBU returns home for a showdown with PacWest rival Azusa Pacific Saturday, Jan. 13 at 5 p.m.

For the first time this season, the Lancers had five players score in double digits. Tori Mitchell led the way with 22 points on 83-percent shooting (10-of-12) in 17 minutes. Lexy Ram chipped in 14 points and eight rebounds, while Emma Meriggioli came close to a triple double, with nine rebounds, seven assists and six points.

"It's a good effort, we are best when we are balanced and that showed tonight," Olson said. "We had five players in double digits and when we do that, we are going to be tough to beat."

Emily Schmidt collected her first double-double as a college player before the third quarter even ended and finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

"I was trying to make hustle plays, crash the offensive boards or crash on defense, especially when they're tired – work to get in there," said Schmidt, whose up-tempo play helped set the tone for her teammates. "We have a lot of guards who can run really fast. We like the fast-paced game."

Off the bench, Georgia Dale led CBU in scoring the first half, with 12 points in 11 minutes, and wound up with 17 points in the end. Akayla Hackson added eight points, five assists and four rebounds, while Blaysen Varnadoe contributed 11 points and six rebounds off the bench, as well.

"It's really encouraging having the bench we have," Mitchell said, "knowing when you're out after some tough minutes, you can see your teammates have your back and are making awesome plays."

The Penguins came out and scored seven of the first nine points of the game, but a 16-3 run gave the Lancers an 18-10 lead with two-and-a-half minutes left in the first quarter. Ram started the run with consecutive jumpers, while Meriggioli hit a three off an Ane Olaeta assist. Schmidt then made it 13-10 with back-to-back buckets for CBU.

The Lancers did not miss a beat when they went to the bench, as a layup from Dale and three-pointer from Varnadoe built on their lead. Hackson then converted an and-one before Dale forced a turnover and hit a jumper at the other end. Dale and Varnadoe both nailed threes before the first was over to give CBU a 29-18 lead going into the second quarter.

Dominican showed why it's undefeated in the PacWest, though, and rallied to take a 46-43 lead at halftime. CBU scored five of the first seven points in the third quarter, though, and then built on that momentum.

The home team ended the quarter on a 13-7 run to take a 70-63 lead into the fourth quarter. Mitchell was a big reason for the surge, scoring nine points in the 10-minute quarter.

"My teammates encouraged me, my fellow senior Emily backed me up," Mitchell said of her strong play down the stretch. "They told me, 'You're a big post, so go dominate.' It really helped."

It did not get any better for the Penguins in the fourth, with the Lancers starting the frame on a 15-4 run to make it 85-67 with 4:50 to play, with Ram providing eight of those points and Mitchell adding seven more.