The College of Marin Women's Basketball team should have a motto for the 2016-2017, "Five Strong Is All We Need," as the Mariners battled league foe Solano while dressing just five players yet again. While Solano College emerged with the victory, a strong second half by Marin showed the team does not give up without a fight. The 79-56 score line could have been significantly worse if not for the heart and determination shown by Marin in the second half.
The game began relatively even as Solano had a 12-9 advantage with three minutes remaining in the first quarter. A last minute bucket by Marin cut the lead to 18-13 after the first ten minutes of play. An 18-7 second quarter gave Solano a 36-20 lead at halftime. Marin came out quietly to start the third and Solano pushed the lead to 26 points after three quarters with the score 57-31. With 10 minutes left to play Marin kicked it into high gear.
The fourth quarter saw Marin have their highest scoring period of the season as they poured in 25 points. Amari Allison was relentless in the lane with several acrobatic layups. Ureka Abbushi had a pair of threes, while Tori Buckley initiated several fast breaks. After pulling their starters, Solano was forced to reintroduce them to the game in order to prevent a Marin comeback.
Allison led Marin with 24 points and 14 rebounds, while adding six steals and three assists. Tori Buckley flew all over the court for her 11 points, while swiping the ball seven times. Ureka Abbushi had an efficient shooting night for 14 points, including three three pointers, and chipped in four rebounds and four assists.
Marin enters their final week of the season with a road game at Yuba and a home game on Friday, February 10th against Contra Costa College.