College Women's Basketball: Lady Raiders Back On Winning Track

After struggling against Grays Harbor three days earlier, Pierce's Unique Taufa’asau scored a game-high 30 points against Centralia and got the Raiders back on track with a 69-49 victory on Saturday at home in Lakewood

“We set goals for each game and we strive to reach those goals,” Taufa’asau said. “We struggled to find some chemistry early in season, but we are getting better every practice. If we continue to play like we did tonight, I can see us winning the western division and the NWAACC championship.”

Taufa’asau scored 20 of the 30 Raiders halftime points and went seven-for-eight from the field while the rest of the team went 4-for-16 with 10 points. Pierce head Brian Purugganan said Taufa'asau had something to prove.

“This year’s team has bought into the plan, never give up and keep getting better,”  Brian Purugganan said.

Pierce's Taylor Riley blocked Sarah Petrino’s shot and took it the length of the court for an uncontested layup to cap a 15-4 run to stretch the lead to 30-15 with 3 minutes remaining in the first half. The Raiders led 30-20 at the break.

Pierce continued their strong play in the second half, as Riley hit a pair of free throws, which highlighted a 25-14 run in the second half and a 55-34 lead with seven minutes left in the game. Riley finished the game with 13 points, six rebounds and five assists and Jennifer Rae contributed 10 points and 9 rebounds.

The Lady Raiders out-hustled the Traiblazers by out-rebounding them 20-14 and 12-2 on second-chance scoring.

The Lady Raiders (2-2 Northwest Athletic Association for Community College Western Division) got a much needed win before facing division foe Highline (3-1 NWAACC Western Division) for a share of second place.

“Early in the season we have played some really good teams,” Purugganan said. “We are still learning to attack the ball with more consistency and cut down the turnovers, but we are getting better every game.”

Taufa'asau summed it up perfectly.

“It’s all about heart,” she said.