The Westmont women’s basketball team was defeated by Pepperdine on Saturday, 68-56.
It was the season opener for the Warriors (0-1), who finished last season as the top-ranked team in the NAIA a season ago before the national tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Westmont had a balanced scoring attack on Saturday afternoon, as three starters notched double figures. Leading the way was Stefanie Berberabe, who finished with a team-high 16 points. Berberabe also had four rebounds, three assists and four steals. Kaitlin Larson added 14 points, while Iyree Jarrett finished with 13 points, five assists and four rebounds.
The Wave were led by Malia Bambrick, who scored a game-high 20 points on 8-11 shooting. Cheyenne Givens added 13 points and three assists in the victory.
The Warriors never held the lead on Saturday and shot just 33.9% for the game, including making just five of 18 attempts from behind the arc (27.8%). Trailing by eight at the half, Pepperdine (1-0) outscored Westmont 18-13 in the third, though the Warriors had a 16-13 advantage in the final period.
Westmont’s original season opener, scheduled for Friday against Simpson, was canceled due to a positive COVID-19 case for the Red Hawks.
They will be back in action on Jan. 9 as they kick off Golden State Athletic Conference play, hosting Vanguard. The start time of the game is pending.
email: mwhite@newspress.co
