HONOLULU – Hawai'i Pacific University collected its second straight PacWest Conference victory on Sunday, with a come-from-behind 73-70 triumph over Fresno Pacific at The Shark Tank.
 
The Sharks (6-14, 3-10) overcame a 10-point first half lead by the Sunbirds (6-11, 3-9), then held off FPU down the stretch.
 
For the second straight game, freshman Allison Ross of Boise, Idaho/Boise set a season-high with 19 points to lead the Sharks. Junior Avery Cargill of Santa Rosa, Calif./Cardinal Newman dropped in 17 points, while junior Tavia Rowell of Langley, B.C./Walnut Grove just missed a double-double with 16 points and nine rebounds.
 
FPU was led by Breanna Hurt and Felicia Dourva with 16 points each, while Anisa Rillo posted 14 points and Sara Lundqvist 11 points. Hurt and Lundqvist led the Sunbirds with seven rebounds apiece.
 
HPU shot 41 percent for the game (21-of-51), with 9-of-18 (50 percent) coming from the 3-point arc. The Sharks hit 58 percent (7-of-12) of their shots in the fourth quarter, including 4-of-5 (80 percent) from the arc. HPU made 22-of-31 (71 percent) from the foul line. FPU hit 40 percent from the field (25-of-62), with 8-of-30 (27 percent) behind the arc. The Sunbirds were 12-of-15 (80 percent) from the charity stripe. Fresno Pacific edged HPU 37-35 on the boards, but the Sharks turned the ball over 11 times to the Sunbirds 12.
 
The Sharks swapped the lead through most of the first quarter before FPU used a 7-0 run to end the quarter for a 22-14 lead.
 
The Sunbirds built their lead to 10 with 7:42 remaining in the second on a put-back layup by Lydia Manu for their largest lead of the game. But that's when HPU responded with a 14-2 run to take a 30-28 lead on a Rowell jumper with 2:58 before halftime. The Sunbirds responded with an 8-0 run of their own to take a 36-30 lead to the locker room.
 
FPU came back for the third quarter to push the lead to nine, only to have the Sharks get a Ross 3-pointer to key a 14-4 run to put HPU in front 47-46 on a 3-pointer from Cargill with 1:35 left in the quarter. The team traded scores until Dourva hit a 3 in the closing second to give FPU a 51-50 lead after three.
 
FPU got a layup to start the fourth from Julie Ramirez to go up 53-50. After a pair of free throws cut the lead to one, Cargill got a steal that set up Ross' triple with 9:05 to play to give HPU the lead for good at 55-53. HPU made the run 7-0 on a Cargill layup.
 
The Sharks pushed the lead out to seven, only to see the Sunbirds claw back to a one-point deficit at 69-68 with 1:13 remaining. Ross buried a 3 with 46 seconds left, only to have Hurt hit a jumper to cut the lead to 72-70. Rowell added a free throw, but the Shark defense wouldn't allow another FPU point as HPU pulled out the 73-70 victory.
 
This was the Sharks second win in a brutal 12-day stretch that sees the HPU women play eight games. The Sharks now travel for six games in northern California, including a four-games in five-day stretch. The action starts with first of two straight at Dominican. Tipoff is slated for 3:30 p.m. HST (5:30 p.m. PST) Tuesday at the Conlan Center.