Lancers Run Away with First WAC Win

Saturday, January 12

Riverside, Calif.

1:00 PM

California Baptist University

Chicago State

Chicago St.

California Baptist

Photo by: Reagan Lee

Lancers Run Away with First WAC Win

1/12/2019 3:16:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: Andrew Shortall, Asst. Sports Information Director

RIVERSIDE, Calif. – A complete team effort earned California Baptist University its first-ever Western Athletic Conference win and its most dominant NCAA Division I victory yet.

Five Lancers scored double-digit points in an 89-52 win over Chicago State on Saturday afternoon at the CBU Events Center. It was difficult for either team to find much separation in the first 18 minutes of the game, but CBU found its rhythm late in the second quarter and built on that in the second half to secure the big victory.

"We did a nice job of showing some resiliency and working through some things," Coach Jarrod Olson said.

Ane Olaeta was a big reason why CBU was able to pull away in the second half. The sophomore point guard started to take the game over in the second quarter, and carried her momentum into the third quarter, as the Lancers built up a commanding lead.

Olaeta finished one point off her career and season high, with 23 points on 9-of-11 shooting from the field and 3-4 from three. She also had six assists, five rebounds and two steals.

"Tonight was a great game for her, she made a lot of great passes and made good choices off ball screens, whether she was going to shoot, drive or pass," Olson said of Olaeta. "It's really nice to see her continue to grow as a player. She's had a pretty good year for us, and it's nice to see her elevate."

There was plenty of balance in the win for CBU. Delacy Brown posted 17 points, with perfect 7-7 shooting at the free-throw line, while Britney Thomas had 13 points, 13 rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Caitlyn Harper and Georgia Dale (three assists, two steals) each scored 11 points.

"The balance is always really good, we always want the ball to find the shooter instead of forcing it to one person," Olson said. "We are better when five people are playing as a group instead of just playing off one person all the time."

A 9-2 run gave CBU its largest lead yet, 15-8. Harper had four points in the run, while Brown and Dale also had field goals in that span.

The Lancers take their largest lead of the game, 15-8, after buckets from Caitlyn Harper, Delacy Brown and Georgia Dale. #LanceUp pic.twitter.com/y33P22BcYb
— CBU W. Basketball (@CBUwbb) January 12, 2019

The Cougars then made it a three-point deficit, 19-16, going into the second quarter. A 7-0 run gave CBU another 28-21 advantage five minutes before halftime. Olaeta had a hand in all seven points, scoring five herself and then assisting on a fast-break bucket from Dale.

The Lancers increase their lead 28-21 halfway through the second quarter on a three-pointer from Ane Olaeta and layup from Georgia Dale.#LanceUp pic.twitter.com/7Rg5VZRIsL
— CBU W. Basketball (@CBUwbb) January 12, 2019

Chicago State fought back to make it a four-point game, but the Lancers finished the last minute-and-a-half of the quarter with another 7-0 run. Olaeta had four of those points, while Dale and Harper also contributed.

It wound up being the beginning of a 29-4 run that carried over into the third quarter and gave the Lancers a 63-36 lead with 12 minutes to play. CBU started the third quarter on a 19-2 run, with Olaeta scoring 10 of those points.

This game belongs to Ane Olaeta❗️❗️❗️

The sophomore point guard has upped her point total to 20 early in the third quarter to give CBU a 53-32 lead in the game.#LanceUp pic.twitter.com/LpBLgbtLTf
— CBU W. Basketball (@CBUwbb) January 12, 2019

"Our ball movement was pretty good, we got some shots to fall and got some easy ones in transition, which helped things," Olson said of the big run. "Ane was doing a really nice job of getting people good looks. Once we got some to fall, we got some confidence and things kept building from there."

The Lancers kept their momentum going in the fourth quarter, as they built their lead up as high as 39 in the final few minutes.

Delacy Brown knocks down a three in transition, off an Ane Olaeta assist, to give CBU a 79-45 lead in the game.#LanceUp pic.twitter.com/KBvHIt7z2x
— CBU W. Basketball (@CBUwbb) January 12, 2019

CBU improves to 7-9, 1-3 in WAC play this season, while Chicago State slides to 0-15, 0-2. The Lancers conclude their three-game home stand with their final non-conference game of the year against Westcliff on Thursday at 6 p.m.