Notre Dame overcomes foul trouble to win Shamrock Classic over Cal

A bit tight, but still a win.

ST. LOUIS — [autotag]Niele Ivey[/autotag]’s St. Louis homecoming could have gone a lot smoother. She didn’t plan on so many key players having to sit at a crucial time so that could be on the court at the end of the Shamrock Classic. Still, she gladly will take a 90-79 win over California.

The Irish (2-0) led by as much as 14 in the third quarter, but three players ([autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag], [autotag]Maddy Westbeld[/autotag] and [autotag]Lauren Ebo[/autotag]) had four fouls before the end of that frame. With Ivey forced to go to her bench as the fourth quarter began, the Bears (1-1) whittled the deficit down to three. Fortunately, the Irish were able to calm themselves down, and the reserves were able to tread water before the foul-plagued starters could return. Once that happened, it was relatively smooth sailing.

[autotag]Dara Mabrey[/autotag] led the Irish with 16 points before fouling out. [autotag]Kylee Watson[/autotag] had 15 points and a game-high seven rebounds. [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] scored 14, Miles achieved a double-double of 13 points and 10 assists, and 12 points came from Westbeld.

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