SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The second-ranked team in the NAIA, Westmont College, led from start to finish in a 71-46 victory over the Bushnell University women's basketball team in Wednesday evening's non-conference contest at the Murchison Gymnasium.
 
Head Coach Chad Meadors said, "Westmont was the more physical team, the more aggressive team and it was right from the start. I was happy to see us respond after the first few minutes. We took the first punch in the nose and did recover from it. But over the course of the game, from their overall physicality to attention to detail, you can see why they are a national championship caliber team year in and year out."
 
Kate Goostrey tallied 13 points on 4-for-5 shooting to lead the Warrior (2-0) offense. Stefanie Berberabe recorded 10 points on the night. The Warriors had 12 different players score in the contest, finished with a 46-30 advantage in rebounding and a 15-0 lead in points off turnovers.
 
The Beacons (0-1) were led by Bella Pedrojetti, who finished with 11 points. Kalina Rojas added nine points on 4-for-7 shooting and a team-high six rebounds.
 
The Warriors used a 10-2 run in the last three minutes of the first quarter to take an early 16-8 lead.
 
Westmont went on to hold Bushnell to just two made baskets in the second quarter, bringing the advantage to 31-15 at the break. The Beacons held the Warriors scoreless for a span of six and a half minutes in the period but were unable to make up ground on the offensive end. Laila Saenz snapped the scoring drought for Westmont with back-to-back threes in the final minute to make it a 16-point lead at the half.
 
Bushnell outscored its first half total in the third quarter alone and did not turn the ball over, but the Warrior offense did not slow down, extending their advantage to 51-31. The Warriors opened the fourth with an 8-0 run and held steady on both ends of the floor to secure the 71-46 win.
 
"We are glad we are getting this lesson in our first game of the year," said Meadors. "There is no quit in our team but there are some things we have to adjust, level up and continue to improve. I'm excited about the upcoming games this weekend and we are going to take this as a lesson and learn from it throughout the year. That's what it's going to take for us to be successful."
 
Up next, Bushnell travels to Rocklin, California to face Lincoln University (Nov. 4) and host William Jessup University (Nov. 5) in the Bill Holtz Warrior Classic.