SAN DIEGO, Calf. - In a close battle between the William Jessup Warriors and the San Diego Christian Hawks, it was the Warriors coming away victorious, 63-59. 
 
Leading the charge for the Warriors in this Golden State Athletic Conference matchup was Anisah Smith who had a game-high 23 points while pulling down five rebounds and dishing out three assists. Joining Smith in double figures to help defeat the Hawks was Lily Hagerty who scored 15 and Ashlyn Jones chipping in 12. 
 
Upon the game's conclusion, Smith praised her whole team, saying, "I was proud of my team for fighting for all 40 minutes. I feel like all 14 players impacted this game, whether it was scoring, rebounding, passing or just giving energy." Smith added, "We needed this win and we went and got it, together." 
 
After a poor shooting performance in the first half, the Warriors bounced back strong in the second half. Lily Hagerty was a leading force in the second half surge as she made three of her five attempts including two crucial three-point buckets to help fend off the Hawks comeback attempt. With the help from Hagerty, the Warriors would go on to outscore the Hawks by three points in the second half. 
 
Head coach Kurt Westendorp addressed the team's shoot woes while applauding his team's ability to stand strong, as he noted, "Today was a really gutsy win for our team." Westendorp also remarked, "We were able to overcome one of our poorer shooting efforts and find a way to grind out the win."
 
The Warriors displayed a strong defensive presence throughout the entirety of the game, forcing the Hawks to commit 20 turnovers. Another key element to the Warriors notching this conference win was their presence on the glass. As a team, they pulled down 45 rebounds, 18 of which were offensive. The second chance points proved to be critical to the game's outcome as the Warriors won the second-chance points battle, 14-4. Emilee Van Dyke led the Warriors on the glass with 9 rebounds as she nearly had a double-double also scoring 8 points. 
 
Coach Westendorp concluded with a sense of optimism and excitement as he said, "We're looking forward to the second round of GSAC play and having five of our remaining seven games at home in Warrior Arena." After having three straight road games, the battle-tested Warriors will return home for a two-game home-stand as they host The Masters University on February 1, and Westmont College February 3.   
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) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat).