The Lincoln University Oaklanders women’s basketball team beat the Simpson University Red Hawks of Redding in overtime by a score of 68-66 on Dec. 7 at the Alameda City College gym. Top scorers for Lincoln include point guard Jaslyn Woods with a team high and also season high of 30 points, and center Teuila Tuiasosopo who finished with 18 points. The Oaklanders are the defending Southwestern States Intercollegiate Conference champions and hope to win back-to-back titles. “Simpson won earlier this season when we played them so we knew we had to stay focused on doing what we do best,” said Lincoln head coach Aimee Longoria. “Staying diligent to our game plan is what helped us today, and it feels really good to win with a bounce-back from a rocky start to our season. Now we’re hoping to repeat as conference champions this season.” The Oaklanders’ offense was efficient in the first quarter as they jumped out to their first lead of the game when Cherika Rafan hit a three-pointer to give them a 16-13 lead with two minutes remaining in the first quarter. Lincoln’s defense stayed locked in as they closed the quarter with an 18-15 advantage. After making three straight buckets in the beginning of the second quarter, the Oaklanders jumped out to their largest lead of the game at 28-17. Nearing the intermission, Simpson consistently found ways to draw fouls and earned six trips to the free-throw line. Woods scored the last points of the first half, making a layup plus a foul shot on that attempt to give Lincoln a 31-26 lead at halftime. “At halftime we talked about the need for us to rebound and box out,” Tuiasosopo said. “Our defense was important for us today.” A battle for buckets in the third quarter involved intense offensives by both teams as the Red Hawks found their way back into the game. They took the lead at 44-42 as their offense began rolling. Simpson scored the last five of six baskets of the quarter. Tuiasosopo was fouled at the end of the third quarter and made both free-throws to tie the game at 44-44 going into the fourth quarter. It was a 56-51 Lincoln lead with three minutes remaining in regulation as Woods made a driving layup.  “Attacking the glass and being aggressive is what worked for me today, and my scoring really helped us get this much-needed win,” Woods said.  After making three straight buckets in the beginning of the second quarter, the Oaklanders jumped out to their largest lead of the game at 28-17. (Photo by Andrew Joseph) The Red Hawks were fouled and made both foul shots to tie the game at 57-57 with under two minutes remaining. Simpson was on the verge of winning the game with a 60-58 lead with one minute left in the fourth quarter. Tuiasosopo was fouled and made both free-throws to tie the game with 27.9 seconds remaining to tie the game again at 60-60. After a late scramble following an Oaklanders turnover the game remained tied and a five-minute overtime began. Tuiasosopo won the game, scoring six points in the extra period. The game was tied at 66-66 with just seconds remaining when Tuiasosopo made the game-winning basket as time expired. “I knew how bad we needed this win so I just tried to help my team as much as I could during the overtime,” Tuiasosopo said. “These last couple wins feel really good because it means all of our hard work is paying off. I think we need to put Oakland on the map with our program, and I feel once we put ourselves out there we’ll get more recognition.” This is Lincoln’s third straight victory pushing them over .500 at a 4-3 season record. With Senaida Barrientos and Angela Olive being the only two returning players from last season, this new Oaklanders team is finding their chemistry at the right time. “It means a lot, the fact that we’re the only women’s basketball team in Oakland,” coach Longoria said. “We have a lot of opportunity to represent this community and grow our program. It’s really exciting to be a part of women’s basketball right now; I feel like the sport is growing and I’m anticipating it to grow even further in the coming years.” Representing the only college basketball program in Oakland is important for Lincoln, which competes in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division 2 play against many other top schools. In just the fourth year of the university sponsoring sports programs, the Oaklanders compete in conference play in four of its total five sports. This game is a great showcasing of the talent held by Lincoln’s women’s basketball team. Pushing forward the sport of women’s basketball locally in Oakland and even further abroad brings forward the best in this promising Oaklanders program.