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The Westmont women’s basketball team (16-3, 9-2) found plenty of offense on Saturday afternoon as the fifth-ranked Warriors defeated Arizona Christian (15-7, 5-6) by a score of 99-57. Five Warriors scored in double figures, led by Iyree Jarrett who knocked down nine 3-point shots on her way to 31 points. She also recorded six assists.
Stefanie Berberabe notched a double-double of 15 points and 13 assists to go with six rebounds. Laila Saenz hit four long-range bombs in tallying 14 points and Destiny Okonkwo recorded her second double-double in as many games with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Kaitlin Larson came off the bench to notch 12 points and six rebounds in 18 minutes of play.
“This is the first time our whole team has been in the same room in over a month,” noted Westmont head coach Kirsten Moore of her team that is recovering from illness and injury. “That was exciting and we wanted to approach today with a renewed sense of gratitude for the opportunity to compete together and to all be here.
“We talked about attacking from the tip and I thought we did that. We had a phenomenal start and another great start to the second half.”
The Warriors began the game with two 3-pointers by Laila Saenz and one by Iyree Jarrett on their first three possessions to take a 9-0 lead. That kicked off a 20-4 run, putting the Warriors in control of the game. Jarrett would drop in two more from long distance before the first quarter came to an end with the Warriors ahead 20-12.
The second quarter looked much like the first with Jarrett landing two more from long distance and Saenz adding another. Gabriella Stoll also connected from beyond the arc, giving Westmont nine threes by halftime.
Destiny Okonkwo marshaled the Warriors inside game, tallying nine points and nine rebounds before heading to the locker room at intermission with a 46-23 advantage.
The Warriors did not let up in the third quarter, which they won 28-10. Jarrett made three more from long distance and Haylie Dermer joined the three-point party with one of her own. Jarrett, Dermer and Saenz each added one more in the fourth quarter bringing the team total to 16, which ties for the sixth most in Warrior history.
“We had great inside-outside presence,” Moore said. “Obviously, Iyree was so hot from the perimeter, but it was not just that. We had five players with double figures and a lot of people contributing. Stef, with 13 assists, is just incredible. She made an impact all over the court. Destiny continued to be a beast inside with 13 boards.
“We have the pieces to build on. We have work to do, but today was a great step. We also had people come off the bench and contribute. That people have had to step into roles that maybe they wouldn’t have over the last month is hopefully going to help us down the stretch.
“Twenty-seven assists is awesome. I thought we played unselfish basketball. We passed up a good shot to get a great shot.
“We are trying to lock in and come back from all the adversity that we faced — to regroup in the second half of GSAC and try to get some rhythm here as we hopefully head into postseason opportunities. We have a ways to go in building toward what we want to be, but this was an important step for us today.”
The Warriors will be presented with an opportunity to take another step next week when they travel to Santa Clarita on Saturday to take on the fourth-ranked Mustangs of The Master’s (22-0, 11-0). Game time is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
Ron Smith is the sports information director at Westmont College.
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