The Pomona-Pitzer (P-P) women’s basketball team put on a strong showing to defeat the Caltech Beavers 63-41 at Voekel Gymnasium, winning their sixth of seven SCIAC games to remain third in the standings. The 13-7 Sagehens entered the game in third place in the SCIAC, whereas the 2-15 Beavers sat in last.
The Sagehens were coming off a stunning upset versus Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) in the Sixth Street Rivalry, marking only the seventh victory over the Athenas in program history. Shea Joko PZ ’28 was reigned in as the game’s hero, draining a game-winning three-pointer to hand the 1st-placed CMS their first SCIAC loss of the season.
Their next opponent, the Caltech Beavers, marked a shift in tempo that allowed the Sagehen squad to regroup as they entered their final stretch of games to clinch a seed in the SCIAC playoffs.
Introductions before the game began with warm hugs, as former P-P Assistant Head Coach and Caltech Interim Head Coach Madison Quan, PZ ’22, CG ’23, greeted the Sagehen starting five on the other side of the court.
For Head Coach Alaina Woo, PO ’17, CG ’21, that moment was a first.
“It was really cool to see her,” Woo said. “I’ve never coached against another head coach who worked for me in conference play, and we got a chance to chat before the game … Q, her thing is hugs, and she turned me into a hugger when she was a player, and so we got lots of good hugs in.”
At tip-off, however, the Sagehens were all business, as they got off to a hot start with a 7-0 run. Emily Lee PZ ’26 knocked down back-to-back three-pointers, and the previous week’s SCIAC Offensive Player of the Week, Jadyn Lee PO ’27, led the team with four rebounds to end the first quarter.
As the game progressed, the Sagehens found their groove and dominated a short-benched Caltech squad. They led the Beavers for 97 percent of the game and kept the lead until the final buzzer.
Such a strong performance also reflected one of the team’s greatest strengths: team depth.
“I’ve told [our players] all year that one of our greatest advantages as a team is our depth, and having 15 players who are good enough to go into a basketball game is not something that every program across the country can say,” Woo said. “I’m not surprised when I watch us put 15 players in the game and execute and win. As long as we’re doing the things we do in practice in games, we look really great.”
One of the shining stars of that 15-person bench was Anna Revill PO ’26, who was greeted with cheers every time she handled the ball in the paint. In the game, Revill went on to put up six points, four rebounds and an assist in just 12 minutes, marking her season-high in every category on the stat sheet.
Even during a season-best performance, Revill first gave credit to her teammates on the court.
“Just a whole lot of love for my team,” Revill said. “That was a super huge team effort. I don’t get in the game as often, so it’s huge when the point guards are doing their job. I feel like we had a lot of strong post-to-post action. That was all my teammates — it was all them. I love them so much.”
Another player who left it all on the court was Ali Bennett PO ’27, putting up seven points and five rebounds in 13 minutes. Bennett has adjusted to a shift in her role on the team, having started 14 games as a freshman before shifting to a bench role in the past two seasons. However, in addition to her joy at seeing her entire team involved on the court, she was unable to hide her excitement about how the squad has performed in the SCIAC and, specifically, against its rival.
“I would say [the rivalry game] was the greatest day of my life,” Bennett said. “You don’t beat CMS on a buzzer beater every day. That was just one of the most hype moments we’ve had as a team this season, and honestly, in my career here. But moving forward, we’re very focused, very calm, cool and collected. Every game’s a new game.”
That process of game-by-game preparation is a goal that runs through the locker room right now, as Coach Woo also affirmed the need to stay grounded in game plans, even if that means using different players at different times.
“The game plan might change, but the process and routine we follow don’t,” Woo said.
“The game plan might change, but the process and routine we follow don’t,” Woo said. “What doesn’t change is what we do every day in practice and how we do that preparation and how we practice our game plan. Our team this semester has done a really good job of following the same process and treating every game the same, no matter who our opponent is.”
As another season nears its end, the ability to prepare for each game will be crucial, especially against high-performing opponents the Sagehens will face in the playoffs. After a week-long break following the victory over Caltech, P-P convincingly defeated the Occidental College Tigers 87-67, staying hot in their final stretch of the season.
P-P will host the Chapman University Panthers at Voekel Gymnasium on Feb. 7. That game will mark the start of a final three-game home stretch, followed by a matchup against the Whittier College Poets and then the CMS Athenas. The CMS vs. P-P game will also feature a senior night celebration for the graduating seniors as they depart the program.
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