With less than three minutes to go in a gridlocked game that would determine Cal Poly’s playoff seeding, junior guard Sidney Richards got a pass on the wing, drove hard to the hoop and scored the go-ahead bucket over the UC San Diego defenders.
On the next possession down, senior forward Natalia Ackerman found Richards again on a pass out of the post, and Richards knocked down the clutch three-pointer, putting the Mustangs up by five in front of the cheering home crowd.
The Mustangs (17-12, 13-7 Big West) never let the Tritons (12-19, 8-12 Big West) back into the game, securing the key 59-52 win to end the regular season, clinching a top four spot in the Big West and a first-round bye in the upcoming playoffs on Saturday, March 9.
Richards, who has become a primary ball handler and scorer off the bench, provided key shots throughout Saturday’s game. She finished with 13 points on 4 of 5 shooting.
“As a point guard and as a junior, I have to be poised in those positions, and my teammates set me up for those shots or for those backflows,” Richards said.
It was also the Mustangs’ final home game. The team honored their three seniors before the game: Ackerman and graduate students Ania McNicholas and Amanda Olinger.
“The ceremonies were really emotional for me, but I was just more happy and grateful than anything. And I think it really did help boost us,” Ackerman said.
She then held down the Mustangs on the defensive end, blocking four shots and grabbing 10 rebounds. The defensive performance brought Ackerman’s block total to a league-leading 61 on the year, breaking the all-time single-season Cal Poly program record.
“It’s everything,” Ackerman said. “Being the number one shot blocker in the league was my first goal. I’m really blessed and grateful. It means the world, especially to do it in front of all my family and friends and with my teammates by my side,” Ackerman said.
The Mustangs dominated defensively and on the glass, leading the Tritons in offensive and defensive rebounding, as well as steals and blocks.
They were coming off of a tough 34-point loss against UC Irvine on Thursday, and head coach Shanele Stires believes the resurgent win will help refocus the team as they shift their attention to the approaching Big West playoffs in Las Vegas.
“To get over the hump again, I think that’s something that we’ve struggled with, especially closing games out,” Stires said. “So to see our group bounce back and be resilient in the fourth and close the game out strong … I think it’s big time for our ladies, a big confidence boost going into the Big West Championships.”
This season was not predicted to be a particularly successful one for the Mustangs, who were ranked 8th in the preseason coaches poll.
“Given that when we took the program over, it was coming off of a three-win season, I felt like the energy and expectation level of the program were extremely low,” Stires said. “I think, given that after one recruiting class, I like the fact that we finished in the top four in the league.”
With the tiebreaker that the Mustangs earned over UC Davis, the win firmly positions them in the second round of the Big West Playoffs. They will need three straight wins in the tournament in order to take this year’s championship.
“I think it’s just game by game honestly, we just need to focus on whoever we play first and lock into that and let the good vibes roll from today,” Ackerman said.
The Mustangs will open their Big West playoff run on Thursday, March 14, in Henderson, Nevada playing one of the winners from the first round of games.