The University of Redlands women's basketball team celebrated a new era by revealing a faster, more diversified style of play, which created success on various levels during the 2012-13 campaign. After firing off six consecutive wins for the program's hottest start to the regular season, the Maroon and Gray put together a 19-7 overall record to go along with a tied-for-second-place effort in Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) competition at 12-4.
Following an exhibition game against NCAA Division I UC Davis, the Bulldogs earned a pair of wins in the Redlands Tip-Off Classic, which was highlighted by a six-point triumph over regional foe, Hardin-Simmons University (TX). Redlands looked to the standout play of a two newcomers to propel the squad to the exciting outcome against the Cowgirls. Up by a score of 49-46 with less than five minutes to go, freshman forward Brinsley Farry (Ventura, CA) knocked down a huge three-pointer off of an assist by junior guard Colleen Goeser (San Carlos, CA) to make it a six-point game. After a missed bucket by the Cowgirls, Goeser also found her sweet spot on an outside jumper to make it a three-possession game at 54-46 with 3:43 left on the clock. The Bulldogs maintained their lead through the final whistle for the program's second win of the season.
Just four days later, the Maroon and Gray faced off against the then-No. 2 Bruins of George Fox University (OR), upsetting the 2012 NCAA Division III Champions in a 66-63 decision. With 7:40 to go in the game, the Bulldogs took the lead on a jump shot by junior forward Brittany Oster (Agoura Hills, CA) before rattling off an 8-0 run for a 53-46 advantage. From here, Redlands played intelligent basketball while hitting its shots, including three of the team's 10 three-pointers of the night, en route to the significant win.
The team capped off its hot start with three more victories, including two in SCIAC action over Caltech and Pomona-Pitzer Colleges.
Redlands' first loss of the campaign came against the Tigers of Occidental College, in a game that included seven lead-changes and multiple runs by both teams. But the Bulldogs' late-game deficit proved to be too much to recover, resulting in the 67-74 defeat.
Unfortunately, this outcome spurred a three-game skid, as Redlands dropped games to in-region opponents, Lewis & Clark College (OR) and Trinity University (TX).
Nonetheless, the Bulldogs quickly recovered by unleashing their highest scoring performance of the season with a 90-74 win over Hanover College (IN) on Dec. 19 for Head Coach Rich Murphy's 100th career victory. On the heels of 50% shooting, including a 43.8% effort from downtown, the Bulldogs broke open a four-all game and maintained a double-digit lead from the 11:33-mark of the first stanza. Senior guard Allison Wong(Redding, CA) stepped up with a team-high 20 points on 6-for-8 shooting.
Redlands continued to pour on the offense when it faced Manchester University (IN), dominating the opponents en route to a 70-29 triumph. The Bulldogs' stifling defense held the opponents to a mere 22% shooting performance for the Spartans' lowest number of points this season. In addition, Redlands utilized 14 players in the game, with all but two of them scoring at least two points in the 41-point triumph. The Maroon and Gray bench accounted for 29 points, with senior guard Ashley Sevilla (San Diego, CA) chipping in 10 and sophomore forward Vianna Amabile (Temecula, CA) adding eight.
The Maroon and Gray returned to SCIAC action during the next four games, with Redlands taking wins over Whittier College and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, while falling to the University of La Verne and Chapman University. Against the Athenas, the Bulldogs fought to extend the game before finally winning it in the second overtime. During Family Fun Night, Wong drained a last-second three-pointer to send the game to overtime and then Goeser sank the winning free throw with four seconds remaining in the second overtime to provide the 62-61 edge for the Bulldogs.
After knocking off regional rival, UC Santa Cruz, by a score of 54-46, Redlands captured a 61-53 victory over the first-place Regals of Cal Lutheran University on Jan. 24. With Oster supplying a 20-point, 11-rebound effort, the Bulldogs lit up the scoreboard in the first half by converting 57.1% of their shots en route to a sizeable lead that lasted through the final whistle.
Less than a week later, Redlands avenged its earlier-season loss to La Verne by prevailing in the home showdown against the Leopards, 86-82. Goeser led the charge with a career-high 24 points and sank the final two free throws of the game, pushing the Bulldogs' advantage to four with 30 seconds remaining.
Despite a second loss to the Chapman Panthers, the Maroon and Gray rattled off four victories to close out the regular season with great momentum and confidence. Against Occidental on Senior Night, the Bulldogs led wire-to-wire after senior forward Chelsea Katsch (Davis, CA) found Wong and Sevilla for back-to-back threes on the team's opening possessions. With junior guard Marika Staton (El Centro, CA) coming off the bench to score 17 points in her 19th out of 22 double-digit performances on the season, the Maroon and Gray prevailed in a physical and heated battle by a score of 65-52. Redlands then stunned Cal Lutheran with a second win over the first-place Regals, this one coming on the road by a score of 72-63. Sophomore guard Claire Stach (Portland, OR) led the Bulldog offense with a 22-point performance, which came off of 8-for-11 shooting.
The Redlands women's basketball team secured a tie for second place in the conference standings by defeating the Athenas of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges in the final game of the regular season. The team's efensive prowess provided great opportunities for the Bulldogs, as Oster provided a career-high 15 rebounds and junior forward Madison Sanders-Curry (San Jose, CA) pulled in 11 boards and blocked three shots.
The Bulldogs advanced to the SCIAC Postseason Tournament for the sixth straight season, earning a semifinal match-up against Chapman University. Despite leading by 11 points at the halftime break, Redlands could not hold on, resulting in the difficult two-point defeat and the end of the 2012-13 campaign.
After leading the team in scoring with 13.7 points per game, Staton represented the Bulldogs on the All-SCIAC First Team. She also provided 5.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists to go along with 47 total three-pointers.
Oster and Goeser landed on the All-Conference Second Team as inaugural recipients. Oster offered 11.9 points and a team-high 8.4 rebounds, while Goeser contributed 9.3 points, 3.38 assists, and 4.5 rebounds.
Sevilla finished out her four-year career at Redlands with 175 three-pointers, which places her second all-time in program history. Her long-range showing at 39.9% also lands her third.
Although the team graduates Wong, Sevilla, and Katsch, the Bulldogs return a hearty and determined group of competitors that sits in position to continue the winning ways of Head Coach Rich Murphy's career. Having finished second or higher in five of six seasons, the Maroon and Gray continue to live up to impressive expectations with new players finding the ability to step up when called upon.