ROCKLIN, Calif. – For one final time on their home court, five seniors took to the hardwood for William Jessup University as they closed out the regular season against the No. 2 ranked team in the nation, Westmont College. Jessup looked energized and dominant early, but the run would eventually fall short as they ended their season with a 72-61 defeat.

Taking on a team that held them to just 16 first-half points in their previous meeting (January 23), Jessup seemed to have some extra motivation behind them to start off the night as senior Olivia Nelson (Placerville, CA) drained a 3-pointer on the game's first possession to put Jessup on the board. That momentum continued as senior Crystal Sewell (Ophir, CA) scored the team's next five, driving to the basket and even getting to the line on one occasion for a three-point-play.

There really did not seem to be that big of a mismatch early in Thursday night's contest, as while Westmont went with a full-court press and then a trap defense in the frontcourt, the Warriors were able to battle through some hits and find the open man to hit contested baskets. In the closing seconds of the first, senior Megan Scully (Newark, CA) drained a beautiful hook shot to put the Warriors up 18-14, eclipsing their first half total from the previous matchup, but doing so in just one period this time around.

Everything seemed to be going Jessup's way early on. At the start of the second, the Warriors pushed their lead to eight as Nelson stole the ball and found Sewell on the fast break who would be fouled, but hit both from the line. Westmont then chipped away at the deficit, going on a 5-0 run to cut the lead to three, but a corner 3-pointer from Scully pushed the lead back to six with just over six minutes left in the second.

Jessup got their lead back up to eight with just a couple minutes left in the half, but that would be where Westmont began their attack. Westmont charged forward with an 8-0 run, their largest run of the half, to tie the game at 27-27 heading into halftime. Jessup's offense produced a 34.4-percent showing from the field in the opening half, compared to 31-percent from Westmont.

Westmont continued their fast pace of play to start the second half, as they quickly went ahead by five. The Warriors soon made a run of their own to get back into the game, as Sewell battled down low to get to the free throw line on back-to-back possessions. However, she would go just 1-of-3 from the line in that stretch, and Westmont would counter to push their lead to the highest of the night thus far at 14. Through three quarters though, Jessup trailed by 12.

While Jessup started going toe-to-toe with the second ranked team in the nation, looking as dominant as ever, the energy did not last all game as they appeared sluggish entering the final 10-minutes. The Warriors tried to cut at the double-digit deficit at hand, bringing it to just nine points with over a minute to go, but the late run wasn't enough as Westmont walked away with the 11-point win.

Sewell and Scully each ended with a big night completing career highs of 26 points and 21 points respectively. Alexandra Rodriguez led the team in rebounds with seven.

Thursday's game was the final contest of thr 2015-16 regular season, and was also Jessup's annual Senior Night. The Warriors said goodbye to five seniors Thursday night: Nelson, Sewell, Scully, Alexandra Rodriguez, and Diana Corona.

Jessup now shifts their focus towards the next step of the 2016 campaign, the Golden State Athletic Conference playoffs. Round one of the playoffs will take place next week on Thursday. All games of the 2016 GSAC playoffs will take place at Hope International University in Fullerton, CA. Check back to www.jessupathletics.com throughout the week for game times, matchups, and seeding information.

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William Jessup University is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC). For additional information regarding Jessup Athletics, visit www.jessupathletics.com; visit www.jessup.edu for more information on William Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: William Jessup University Athletics (Facebook), @WJUSports (Twitter), and @JessupAthletics (Instagram, and Snapchat).