Jacquelyn Marshall

So far, The Master’s College women’s basketball team has yet to find themselves in a close game against a GSAC opponent.

Last Tuesday, the ninth-ranked Lady Mustangs opened GSAC play in Fullerton against Hope International.  After facing an early deficit in the first half, TMC produced a 32-19 run and controlled the court for the rest of the game.  The Lady Mustangs ended up beating the Royals 84-72.

Four days later, Arizona Christian rolled into Bross Court and faced a 77-45 shellacking from the red-hot Lady Mustangs.

Following suit, TMC’s conference dominance continued Tuesday night when the Lady Mustangs topped the Concordia Eagles (7-6, 1-2 GSAC) 86-63 in Irvine.

With the win, TMC improved its 2013-14 record to 15-3 and 3-0 in GSAC play.  Next to Vanguard, the NAIA’s first-ranked squad, the Lady Mustangs are the only other team in the GSAC with a spotless conference record.

“It’s always tough to win a conference game on the road, but I thought we played 40 consistent minutes tonight,” commented fifth-year head coach Dan Waldeck. “Our defense and rebounding continue to improve, so from that standpoint I thought it was a good night for Mustang basketball.”

Whitney Best

And while the squad faced an initial 2-0 disadvantage, Jacquelyn Marshall (San Clemente, CA) put TMC ahead 4-2 with two jumpers.  The Lady Mustangs then opened up a scoring rampage with Whitney Best (Snohomish, WA) scoring 14 points and Marshall putting up 10 more. In the first half, Nicole Nitake (Torrance, CA) and Zoe Scott (Spokane, WA) both scored 6 points by going 2-3 behind the arc.

At the half, TMC enjoyed a 45-27 lead built on the squad going 16-30 (53%) in the field, 6-11 behind the arc, and 7-13 (53%) on free throw attempts.

The Lady Mustangs continued the second half without skipping a beat by maintaining a hearty lead. At the 8:33 mark, Olivia Thompson (Huntington Beach, CA) scored off a free throw, bringing the lead to 73-48, and giving TMC a 25 point advantage- the largest of the evening.

In the game’s final eight minutes, a handful of free throws from Best and Marshall, a Nitake three pointer, a jumper from Shannon Kingery (West Hills, CA), and a pair of layups from Scott and Kelly Burns (Yorba Linda, CA) put TMC up for good at 86-63.

Best led all scorers with 18 points, while Marshall followed closely behind with 16 more. Notably, Scott put up 13 points while Megan Lindsley (Vancouver, WA) finished the night with 10 points to her name.

As a team, TMC finished the night by going 26-58 (44%) from the field, 10-28 (31%) on three pointer attempts, and 27-34 (79%) behind the charity stripe.

Now, the Lady Mustangs will set their focus on Saturday’s showdown against Biola (6-13, 1-2 GSAC).  Adding to the storied rivalry between the two schools will be the second annual “Stampede” event hosted by The Master’s College.

Those planning on attending Saturday’s game are encouraged to arrive early as parking and seating are expected to be at capacity.