Photo: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (Jan. 29, 2022) – The Whittier College women's basketball team turned in a strong second half at host California Lutheran University on Saturday afternoon, hanging 32 second-half points on the Regals with 16 coming in each of the final quarters.

Senior guard Teani White (Burbank, Calif. / Viewpoint) registered her seventh 20-plus point game of the season, converting on a team-high eight field goals while playing the full 40 minutes. The Poets also received considerable contributions from junior Lizzie Scriven (Portland, Ore. / Wilson) and freshman Rhe Nae Leach (Riverside, Calif. / John W. North). Scriven came off the bench a score a season-best eight points, completing a nice and-one play to open the fourth quarter that gave the visiting team a late spark. Leach, meanwhile reached double-figures for the third-consecutive game, giving the Poets' offense an extra dimension during this recent stretch. Leach got to the free-throw line a game-high 11 times, successfully hitting eight throws that accounted for more than half of her points. She also had five rebounds, three assists and two steals in posting the most impressive all-around line of any Whittier player on Saturday.

On the heels of a strong first quarter from the host Regals, the Poets were poised to work their way back into contention just as they had in many of their SCIAC games thus far, and while the scoring slowed considerably for Regals in the ensuing frame, the Poets' offense couldn't quite make them pay, though opportunities were abound. The Purple & Gold's collective ability to get to the free throw line took a big step forward, as the 24 team free throw attempts are the Poets' most in nearly two months. If the women's basketball team can replicate anything close to that moving forward, they will become an even tougher out for opponents in the second half of the SCIAC schedule.

Head Coach Roy Dow and the Poets will look to recover on the road when they travel to first-place University of Redlands (9-1 SCIAC) on Wednesday, Feb. 2 at 7 p.m.

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