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Cal Baptist rolls past Cal Poly, into Elite Eight

Women's Basketball UAA Media Relations

Cal Baptist rolls past Cal Poly, into Elite Eight

ANCHORAGE – Powered by huge all-around efforts from guard Cassidy Mihalko and center Darsha Burnside, 5th-seeded Cal Baptist rolled to a 81-58 victory over Cal Poly Pomona in the NCAA Div. II West Regional Women's Basketball Championships title game at the Alaska Airlines Center on Monday night.

The Lancers (27-6) – in just their second year of NCAA playoff eligibility and making their first-ever tournament appearance – now advance to the NCAA Div. II Elite Eight in Sioux Falls, S.D., where they will face East Region champion New Haven on Mar. 24 in the national quarterfinals.

The 7th-seeded Broncos (21-9) – the defending West Region champions – were led by 24 points and eight rebounds from senior center Jada Blackwell, along with 10 points and 13 rebounds from senior forward Ashley Lovett.

Monday's game was tight through the first 15 minutes, with Blackwell pulling the Broncos within 24-20 on her third three-pointer of the first half. That shot prompted a timeout by Lancers coach Jarrod Olson, which seemed to spark his team. CBU scored the next seven points and led 35-27 at halftime when Burnside converted a layup with 3 seconds left.

Cal Poly still trailed just 37-31 with 16:27 remaining, but its fellow Southern Californian foe got a three-pointer from Kamille Diaz and a traditional three-point play from Mihalko to begin an 11-0 spurt that essentially sealed it.

Diaz scored eight of her team-high 18 points in the final four minutes, shooting 4 of 9 from long range. The sophomore point guard also had six rebounds, seven assists and one turnover, along with two of her team's 12 steals.

Mihalko finished with 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting (5-5 FT), seven rebounds, six assists and two steals to earn All-Tournament Team honors. Meanwhile, Burnside collected the tourney's Most Valuable Player award despite scoring just eight points in the title game, capping a huge defensive effort with 15 rebounds and five blocks against the Broncos.

Reserve guard Erin Asher added 13 points (4-8 FG, 3-5 3FG) and four assists for CBU, which finished runner-up in both the Pacific West Conference regular-season standings and postseason tournament.

2015 NCAA Div. II West Regional Championships
All-Tournament Team
Jada Blackwell, Cal Poly Pomona
Aubree Callen, Seattle Pacific
Ashley Lovett, Cal Poly Pomona
Cassidy Mihalko, Cal Baptist
MVP: Darsha Burnside, Cal Baptist

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