CMS Women's Basketball Takes Wire-to-Wire Win over Occidental

CLAREMONT, Calif. - Renee Chong had 18 points and the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's basketball team dominated the boards (48-30) as it never trailed on its way to a 67-50 win over Occidental on Saturday afternoon at Roberts Pavilion.

With the win, CMS now stands at 4-3 overall and a perfect 2-0 in SCIAC play, while Occidental falls to 2-4 overall and 0-2 in league play with the loss. 

Ruva Kiara added a career-high 14 points for the Athenas, and pulled down nine rebounds, while Ariana Dalia had 10 points and nine rebounds. Chong had eight rebounds of her own, as CMS nearly had three players with double-doubles. 

Chong had a three-point play with the score tied 6-6 to give the Athenas the lead for good. A Sadie Heckman three-pointer stretched the lead to 17-10, and Dalia hit a foul shot to give CMS an 18-10 lead heading into the second quarter. 

Occidental got the deficit back within six at 23-17, but Kayla Ishibashi scored on a lay-up off a Dalia feed to start a 9-0 run that stretched the margin to 15. Chong knocked down a three-pointer to get the lead into double figures and then capped it off with a driving layup. 

CMS took a 13-point lead into halftime and got it up to 17 when Dalia converted off a Jacey Carter pass. Occidental put up a battle, though, and got the lead down to 43-35, but Ava Grey capped off the third quarter with a three-pointer to make it a 50-37 game going into the fourth, and the lead stayed in double figures the rest of the way, reaching as high as 21 on another Grey three-pointer. 

CMS will be back in action on Wednesday when it travels to Chapman for a key SCIAC contest, looking to head into the break with a perfect 3-0 record in league play.