By Ron Smith
January 11, 2025
 
(IRVINE, Calif.) A double-double by Lisa Kiefer, and strong second-half performances by Sage Kramer, Bailey Fong and Mariah Brown, led Westmont Women's Basketball (8-6, 4-3 PacWest) to a 69-57 conference road win over the Golden Eagles of Concordia (1-14, 0-8) on Saturday afternoon.
 
For Kiefer, her 12 points and her 20 rebounds were both career highs.
 
The Warriors found themselves in early foul trouble with Kramer, Molly Garnand and Jazmyn Shipp all picking up two fouls in the first quarter. As a result, the trio was limited to a combined 16 minutes of play in the first half.
 
With those three on the bench, the rest of the team battled with the Golden Eagles. Kiefer scored all 12 of her points in the first half and Fong went two of two from beyond the arc on her way to seven first-half points.
 
"Lisa has been such a presence for us on the boards all year," said Westmont's head coach Kirsten Moore. "With others in foul trouble, she really stepped up on the offensive end in the first half, which was fun to see."
 
With two and one-half minutes to play in the opening frame, Fong dropped a triple through the net to give the Warriors a 16-11 lead. However, Cadence Tarrant sank two free throws and Izzy Navarro scored on a jump shot to pull the Golden Eagles to within one (16-15) at the end of the first quarter. Navarro finished the game as Concordia's leading scorer with 24 points
 
With three players sitting out, Westmont used a balanced attack to put up 16 points in the second quarter. Kiefer tallied five, while Fong and Navine Mallon added four each.
 
"I was proud of our entire bench," expressed Moore. "We have been talking about how every single person, even if they don't get on the floor, is a part of a win or a part of a loss. It was great to have team energy from the bench today and people ready to come in and give us big minutes. Today, that was Bailey and Navine, who played a lot of great minutes when others were in foul trouble.
 
"We are deeper than we have ever been. That can be a huge asset for us. We never know what we are going to need in each game or what the circumstances are going to throw at us. Today, it was having three players in foul trouble in the first quarter. That is where our depth can come into play. I am hoping we can continue to build on that."
 
A trey by Navarro gave Concordia its first lead of the game (28-26) with 1:24 remaining before the intermission. Kiefer responded with a layup, to tie the game at 28 all. With 39 second showing on the second-quarter clock, Sierra Clark regained the lead for the Golden Eagles with a jumper in the paint.
 
Brown was awarded free throws when she was fouled while dribbling at the top of the key with 12 seconds left. She made the second attempt to cut the Warrior deficit to two (31-29).
 
After a Concordia turnover, Westmont was awarded the ball under its own basket with eight seconds left. Brown dribbled up the court and passed to Fong. When Fong dribbled across the top of the key, a Golden Eagle defender knocked the ball loose. As the final couple of seconds ticked off the clock, Fong chased down the ball, regained control, took one dribble, turned and fired off a hurried three that banked into the basket as the buzzer sounded. That gave Westmont a 32-31 halftime lead.
 
With the return of Kramer, Garnand and Shipp to the game in the third quarter, Westmont began to take control of the contest through both offensive and defensive efforts.
 
"The player of the game doesn't show up on the stat sheet," noted Moore. "Mariah's defense, today, changed the game in the second half. Navarro is an incredibly gifted offensive player. We were finally able to get some defensive stops. Mariah was a huge piece of that tonight with her toughness, grit and her competitiveness. Also, she made a lot of solid plays down the stretch. Her leadership as our point guard was huge for us today."
 
Westmont outscored Concordia 14-8 in the third quarter with Kramer tallying 12 of the Warriors' points in the penultimate period.
 
With the score tied at 38 and 2:54 left in the third, Kramer grabbed an offensive board and scored on a layup to begin a Warrior 8-1 run. After Navarro made a free throw, Fong scored on a layup to make it a 42-39 game. Kramer took care of the rest of the scoring in the period, making two free throws and adding a late layup to extend Westmont's lead to seven (46-39)
 
"It was nice to see both Sage and Bailey stepping up and scoring in the second half," said Moore. "Their experience from last year came in handy. Sage didn't get flustered. Even though she was in foul trouble in the first half, she was able to stay focused in the second half and execute. Bailey stepped up in really big moments."
 
Concordia started the final frame with a pair of buckets to pull within three (46-43). However, Westmont scored on its next three possessions, creating an 8-0 run. Garnand connected on a hook shot before Kramer recorded an 'and-one' play. Then Fong dropped in another triple to make the score 54-43.
 
With 1:43 left in regulation, Tarrant scored on a layup to reduce Westmont's advantage to four (59-55). The Warriors responded with a layup by Brown before the team made eight of 10 free throw attempts down the stretch to secure the game. Fong, who tallied 18 points in the game, made six of those free throws.
 
The Warriors outrebounded the Golden Eagles 46-30. Kiefer's 20 rebounds ties for fifth best in Warrior history, just three back of the record set by Lauren McCoy against Lewis-Clark State during the 2014-15 season.
 
In the second half, Westmont collected 13 offensive rebounds to Concordia's three, leading to 10 extra possessions.
 
Westmont returns to Santa Barbara for six-straight home games in Murchison Gymnasium. Next week the Warriors will welcome the Penguins of Dominican on Thursday (5:30 p.m.) and the Oaks of Menlo on Saturday (1:00 p.m.).