Toreros defeat the Cougars

USD women’s basketball moves into second place in the WCC after upsetting BYU

Chris Spiering / Sports Editor / The USD Vista

San Diego women’s basketball came into Saturday’s matchup losing their last three games against Brigham Young University (BYU). That losing skid ended as the Toreros defeated the Cougars 51-45 in a competitive thriller. The Toreros improved to 14-9 (8-4 WCC) on the season and remain hopeful for a triple bye going into the West Coast Conference (WCC) playoffs.

Before the game started, USD honored women’s basketball head coach Cindy Fisher for her accomplishments coaching the Toreros the last 15 seasons. She briefly reflected on her experiences as a Torero head coach.

“I am just so blessed to have been here for 15 years,” Fisher said. “I have been very fortunate to coach incredible players and we have had some amazing runs here at USD. Just looking back on it, I’m really proud of what these teams have been able to accomplish — not only on the basketball court but in the classroom. The players are the ones that make me proud and that is why I continue to do it.” 

The first quarter didn’t involve much scoring as both teams fought hard through a defensive battle. USD led at the end of the quarter 8-6, and senior center Leticia Soares came off the bench and scored six of the eight points and grabbed three rebounds. 

The referees seemed to let both teams play as it looked like a lot of fouls weren’t called in the first quarter. Despite the lack of foul calls, 6’7 center Sara Hamson recorded two early fouls in the game for the Cougars which forced her to the bench. That allowed the Toreros to attack the paint, where the Toreros scored eight of their 17 first-half points.  

The Toreros maintained their lead through the second quarter as they led at halftime 17-16 in a low-scoring first half. USD had a lead for over 12 minutes as the Cougars only led for a short two minutes. Soares scored nine points and pulled in seven rebounds and junior guard Myah Pace grabbed five rebounds and drew four fouls. The Toreros shot only 19.4% from the floor in the first half, but went 5-6 from the free-throw line. 

Both teams turned the ball over nine times in the first half, but USD had the points-off-turnovers advantage 10-2. 

The third quarter started off hot as just 30 seconds in, redshirt-junior guard Jordyn Edwards nailed the Toreros’ first three-point shot of the game. She finished the game with two threes, shooting 2-6. 

San Diego jumped out to a 28-21 lead with about five minutes to go in the quarter. But after a timeout by the Cougars, BYU went on a 10-0 run of their own and took a 31-28 lead with just under two minutes to go in the third quarter. Guard Paisley Johnson provided a huge spark for the Cougars as she finished the quarter with 15 points and going 5-6 from the free-throw line. BYU led 33-31 at the end of the quarter. 

Both teams put on a show in the Jenny Craig Pavilion (JCP) as the fourth quarter involved back-and-forth scoring all the way to the finish. The Toreros took the lead back from the Cougars (40-39) with under four minutes to play in the game as the fans started to get loud. 

The players on the bench established their presence by cheering on the Toreros all night long, especially late in the game. 

From that point on, the Toreros had control of the game as they ended the game on an 11-6 run which sealed the victory, 51-45. Three Torero players finished the game in double-digit scoring. Edwards contributed with 12 points, four assists, and six rebounds. Senior guard Madison Pollock ended with 10 points and pulled down seven rebounds. 

Soares provided a huge lift for the Toreros off the bench as she finished the game with her first double-double on the season, recording 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Head coach Cindy Fisher talked about Soares’ performance in the victory. 

“When she comes in she makes an impact right away,” Fisher said. “She’s one of the best post players in this conference and she’s always a nice spark for us off the bench. She is very talented.” 

 The Toreros went 15-18 from the charity strike — shooting a spectacular 83.3% as a team. Pace helped contribute going 7-8 from the line and Pollock went a perfect 4-4. 

San Diego’s defense was also a huge reason for the win. The Toreros held the Cougars to 1-10 from deep and that pleased coach Fisher. 

“I thought our second half defensive pressure was outstanding,” Fisher said. “This is one of the best-scoring teams in the conference and to hold them to 1-10 from the three-point line is absolutely unbelievable. It’s just a credit to our defense, they were locked in, they defended, and they did everything we asked defensively.”  

Edwards talked about what it meant to beat a tough BYU opponent. 

“We have been looking forward to this game all week,” Edwards said. “We really wanted this game. We kind of wanted our revenge, we didn’t play our best at their place and so we wanted to get them back at home. It was really nice.” 

Soares knows how good the Toreros can be after defeating the Cougars. 

“Like Jordyn said, we didn’t play that well last time,” Soares said. “So we just came here and proved that we are a good team and we came here to win this game.” 

Edwards and the rest of the Toreros heard the loud cheers from the fans toward the end of the game. 

“We want to say thank you to everyone who does show up,” Edwards said. “Because it really does help and gives us energy when we are tired. We love to have a crowd and we really appreciate it.” 

The Toreros’ next home game will be against Pacfic University where they will take on the Tigers on National Women and Girls Sports Day. Tip-off is at 6 p.m. in the JCP on Thursday, Feb. 13. Tickets are free for all USD students.