CARSON – Before the season tipped off, the 12 head women's basketball coaches from the California Collegiate Athletic Association predicted Cal State Dominguez Hills to finish a respectable third place.
 
The Toros proved them wrong.

   
With a 19-1 conference record, two of those wins include a season-series sweep over favorites Cal State San Marcos, No. 5/9 Dominguez Hills made an impressive run throughout the season and a 64-61 win over crosstown rivals Cal State LA on Saturday clinched them at least a share of the CCAA championship after honoring three seniors in Kelsey Bell, Deejanae Poland and Dawnyel Lair prior to the contest.
 
While it is the first conference championship banner for seventh-year head coach John Bonner and most of the Toros, it is the second trophy for assistant coach Jaleesa Ross, who was on staff in Dominguez Hills' last title run in the 2015-16 season, the team that last qualified for NCAA Regionals.
 
It is the seventh overall CCAA championship in the history of the program.
 
The win was most-certainly earned for the Toros (25-1), who are one away from tying the 2014-15 team for most all-time. That team also hung a banner at the Torodome.
 
Lair continues making her case for CCAA Player of the Year by scoring 16 points and recording seven rebounds, five assists and four steals. Asia Jordan had a dozen points and seven rebounds despite running into foul trouble at the start of the fourth quarter.
 
Both teams shot under 40 percent from the field. Los Angeles hit 38.6 percent (22-for-57) while Dominguez Hills was 36.5 percent (23-for-63).
 
After the Golden Eagles (17-7, 14-5 CCAA) won the first quarter 19-13, the Toros won the second to take a 31-29 deficit into halftime.
 
Lair carried the Toros in the third quarter, scoring a dozen points on a 20-13 run.
 
The fourth quarter was perhaps the most stressful for both sides, for neither team led by more than four points. Poland made a jumper with 23 seconds left to put the Toros ahead 62-61, and a pair of clutch free throws by Hosanna Walker gave the cushion needed to win the game.
 
The Toros will have two opportunities to win the CCAA championship outright, for they will wrap up the regular season at San Francisco State Thursday (5:30 p.m.) and at Cal State Monterey Bay Saturday (1 p.m.).
 
Dominguez Hills earned a bye into the CCAA Tournament semifinal. With the No. 1 seed, the Toros will play the winner of the No. 4/5 seeds on March 3 at 8 p.m., held at Fitzpatrick Arena at Stanislaus State.

About Cal State Dominguez Hills Athletics
The Toros are proud to be a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) competing at the Division II level, bringing excitement and tradition to the campus through 10 different sports (4 Men's, 6 Women's).  The program boasts 4 NCAA Championships, 2 NAIA National Titles, 10 NCAA West Region crowns and 34 CCAA Championships.  CSUDH is one of 12 universities that competes in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), the most prominent Division II conference in the nation with 155 NCAA National Championships, far more than any other conference in the nation.