CMS Women's Basketball Takes Road 66-55 Win Over Occidental

EAGLE ROCK, Calif. - Ariana Dalia had 19 points and Jacey Carter had a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds as the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's basketball team picked up a key road win over Occidental on Saturday afternoon.

With the win, CMS moves to 16-6 overall and 12-3 in the SCIAC as it sets itself up for a chance to clinch the second seed and home court advantage in the SCIAC semifinals with a win at Redlands on Saturday. Occidental falls to 11-12 overall and 5-9 in the league with the loss. 

The Tigers held a 21-16 lead, before CMS went on a 13-0 run to take a 29-21 lead on a Dalia three-point play with 1:04 left in the half. Occidental got back to within 31-29 early in the second half, before the Athenas went on a 9-0, to take a 40-29 lead on a Carter three-pointer. 

Occidental managed to get a double-digit CMS lead down to just four points at 50-46 with 5:11 left, but Carter answered that challenge with another three, Renee Chong had a three-point play, and the Athenas were able to hold on for a 66-55 win. 

Chong finished with 12 points, and Mary Markaryan had 10 points off the bench for CMS, which had four players in double figures. The Athenas also had a 46-35 edge in rebounding, and held Occidental to just 27.6 percent shooting from the floor. 

CMS travels to Redlands on Wednesday for its regular season finale, knowing that a win will give it a home semifinal game on Thursday, Feb. 23.