SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — The University of Hawai'i women's basketball team survived a late charge from Cal Poly to pull out a 63-59 road win on Saturday at the Mott Athletics Center in San Luis Obispo, Calif.
 
The Rainbow Wahine saw a 13-point lead in the fourth quarter chopped to four with 4:24 left in regulation and Cal Poly cut a six-point deficit with 56 seconds left to one with 10 seconds remaining. But a 3-pointer in the final seconds came up short and UH (10-8, 7-2 Big West) held on to earn a split of its road trip and moved into a tie for first place in the conference standings.
 
UH sophomore forward Imani Perez scored a career-high 21 points on 8-for-11 shooting from the field and guard Daejah Phillips filled the stat sheet with 11 points, nine rebounds and a season-high seven assists.
 
Guard Lily Wahinekapu finished with 10 points and Ashley Thoms hit two 3-pointers and added eight points, the last two coming from the free-throw line after grabbing a rebound on Cal Poly's final shot.
 
UH bounced back from a loss at UC Santa Barbara on Thursday to end the week even with the Gauchos and UC Irvine atop the Big West. UH and Cal Poly entered the day tied for second in the race and the Mustangs (10-9, 6-3) fell a game behind the leaders.
 
UH got off to a 5-0 start but both teams struggled offensively for much of the first quarter and Cal Poly went on a 7-0 run to start the second to take a 14-10 lead. UH scored the final four points of the period to send the teams into halftime tied 22-22.
 
The 'Bows hit seven of their first eight shots of the third quarter and even the miss turned into a bucket. After Wahinekapu missed a 3-pointer from the corner, she circled back and came up with a steal in the backcourt and dropped in the layup. UH ended up going 8 for 10 from the field in the quarter and took a 41-35 lead into the final period.
 
UH opened the fourth quarter with a seven-point run highlighted by Thoms' second 3-pointer to open up a 13-point cushion. Cal Poly put together an eight-point surge midway through the period and closed to 52-48 on Mary Carter's 3-pointer with 4:24 remaining.
 
Perez's final layup gave her UH's first 20-point performance of the season and pushed the 'Bows ahead 58-50 with 2:27 left. But Cal Poly made another run and trailed 60-58 when Sierra Lichte converted a three-point play with 44.4 seconds left.
 
UH gave the ball back with a shot-clock violation with 14 seconds remaining and Lichte drew a foul with 10 seconds showing. She made one of two free throws to cut the margin to one and the Mustangs fouled Phillips, who also made one of two from the line. After a Cal Poly timeout, Annika Shah's 3-pointer grazed the front of the rim and Thoms secured the rebound and the UH win.
 
Sydney Bourland led Cal Poly with 15 points.
 
The Rainbow Wahine return to SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center to open a two-game homestand on Thursday, Feb. 1 against Cal State Fullerton. They'll then face UC Irvine on Saturday, Feb. 3. Tipoff for both games is set for 7 p.m.