ESTERO, Fla. – The #22/21 Gonzaga women's basketball team battled past Dayton 76-65 in the quarterfinals of the Gulf Coast Showcase Friday afternoon inside Hertz Arena in Estero, Fla.
 
Gonzaga (4-1) finished with three players in double-figures, led by a career-high 19 points from Jenn Wirth. Wirth finished 7-of-9 from the floor and a perfect 5-of-5 from the charity stripe; the junior added six rebounds in the win. Jill Townsend (18 points) and Katie Campbell (17 points) rounded out the double-figure scoring for the Zags. LeeAnne Wirth chipped in eight points and a career-high 11 rebounds.
 
The Bulldogs shot 35.4 percent from the floor including 33.3 percent from long range. Gonzaga forced 12 turnovers on the Flyers which led to 23 points. GU also won the battle on the glass, out-rebounding Dayton 33-26.
 
Dayton (3-4) controlled the flow of the game early, forcing 12 uncharacteristic turnovers on the Bulldogs in the first 20 minutes. Coupled with a stagnant second quarter that saw the Zags shoot just 18 percent from the floor for 10 points, Dayton took a two-point lead (27-25) heading into the break.
 
"I think the toughness of our team improved at the half," head women's basketball coach Lisa Fortier said. "We were trying to do too much, and we were turning the ball over [on plays we don't normally make]. I think we settled in a little bit [in the second half] and started working together."
 
Coming out of the half, a layup from Townsend on GU's first possession sparked a 12-5 run over the next 3:30 to give Gonzaga a five-point lead (37-32). Five straight points from Campbell midway through the third period extended Gonzaga's lead to 10, but the Flyers chipped away at the lead, cutting Gonzaga's lead to six (51-45) by the end of the period.
 
Gonzaga opened the fourth period with 6-1 run, fueled by back-to-back buckets from Jenn Wirth followed by a layup from LeeAnne Wirth. The Bulldogs twice extended their lead to 14 points, and with 2:53 to go GU held a 69-55 advantage. Over the next 90 seconds, Dayton held the Zags scoreless, rattling off eight-straight points to cut the lead to six with 1:06 remaining.
 
On the following possession, Campbell hit a deep trey on the wing, and Jessie Loera and Townsend converted 4-of-4 from the line in the closing seconds to seal the 76-65 victory.
 
"Second half, we got some rebounds and we got a little bit of momentum," Fortier said. "We made some shots that we're used to practicing, and we kind of took it from there."
 
Dayton was led in scoring by both Shakeela Fowler and Jayla Scaife with 16 points each. Araion Bradshaw led the Flyers on the glass with five rebounds.
 
Gonzaga continues play in the semifinals of the Gulf Coast Showcase Saturday, Nov. 30 against Middle Tennessee at 2 p.m. Pacific Time inside Hertz Arena in Estero, Fla. Visit GoZags.com for updated game day information.