On Thursday evening, the University of Redlands women's basketball program suffered its first loss on the 2012-13 campaign, falling to the Tigers of Occidental College by a score of 67-74.  In an exciting Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) game that included seven lead-changes and multiple runs by both teams, Redlands faced a late deficit that ultimately proved to be too much to recover. 

After trailing at 4-7, the Bulldogs used an 11-0 run to take a 15-7 lead at the 14:02-mark in the first half.  Junior forward Madison Sanders-Curry (San Jose, CA) hit her first three-pointer of the year and junior guard Colleen Goeser (San Carlos, CA) nailed a jumper as part of that early offensive spurt for Redlands.

Following an Occidental basket, senior guard Allison Wong (Redding, CA) nailed a shot from downtown to give the Maroon and Gray a nine-point advantage.

The Tigers answered with a run of their own, however, regaining the lead at 23-21, with just over five minutes remaining in the first stanza.

Shooting 57.1% from beyond the arc in the first half, Redlands headed into halftime tied with Occidental at 28 apiece.

A 10-0 run to begin the second stanza helped the Tigers to jump out to a 38-28 lead after just two minutes.  Redlands Head Coach Rich Murphy quickly called a timeout, regrouping his team, and the Bulldogs immediately responded with an 8-0 run to cut the deficit to just two points.

Over the next several minutes, the teams exchanged buckets, and the Bulldogs finally regained the lead at 48-47 when senior guard Ashley Sevilla (San Diego, CA) and Wong sank back-to-back three-pointers midway through the second period.

However, Occidental once again answered quickly, going on an 11-2 run to move in front for the final time with 9:52 remaining. 

Now playing from behind, the Bulldogs managed to cut the deficit to just four points on four different occasions, but that was all that Redlands could muster, as the Tigers made their free-throws down the stretch.

Although Redlands shot 41.7% overall and 43.8% from beyond the arc, both of which were better than its opponents' performances, the difference-maker came at the charity stripe.  Occidental made 17 of its 20 chances from the line, while Redlands went 10-for-18. 

Furthermore, the Maroon and Gray held the advantage in rebounds, 40-33.

Sevilla led the way for the U of R, shooting 6-for-10 from the field for 15 points, while Oster put in another solid effort with a double-double at 14 points and 14 boards.  Junior guard Marika Staton (El Centro, CA) was the only other starter in double figures, notching 13 points on the evening. 

Off the bench, Wong provided 11 points on an efficient 4-for-6 shooting night, including a team-high trio of made shots from three-point range.  Once again filling up the box score, Sanders-Curry recorded five points, three rebounds, three assists, two steals and three blocks.

For the Tigers, Makenzie Brandon scored a game-high 27 points while also grabbing seven rebounds.

The Bulldogs (6-1, 2-1 SCIAC) return to action on Saturday afternoon when they take on No. 6 Lewis & Clark College (OR) in a regional showdown.  Tip-off in Currier Gym is scheduled for 2 p.m.