YUMA, Ariz. – The Arizona Western College women's basketball team (20-10) produced a commanding postseason performance Saturday night, rolling past Central Arizona College 77-44 in the Region I semifinal at The House. The Lady Matadors controlled every facet from the opening tip, never trailing in a game that showcased their playoff readiness, defensive wall and offensive firepower.

Mable Doumbia, the ACCAC Player of the Year, delivered a sensational all-around effort, finishing with 20 points, 19 rebounds, five assists and four steals to lead Arizona Western. She powered the Matadors on both ends, recording a double-double and nearly reaching the 20-20 milestone in just 34 minutes of action.

Arizona Western set the tone with suffocating defense and relentless rebounding in the first half, storming ahead 19-12 after one quarter. Jessica Liena sparked the early energy with a steal that led to a Doumbia layup, and the Matadors rode a 28-12 second quarter to build a massive 47-24 halftime lead. Doumbia's second-chance baskets and Chen Pan's shooting stretched the margin, while Arizona Western's defense forced turnovers and held the Vaqueras to just 28 percent from the field.

The Matadors kept their foot on the gas in the second half, outscoring Central Arizona in both the third and fourth quarters. Kimora Jenkins hit from deep to punctuate a 30-point lead in the third, and the defense never wavered, forcing 21 turnovers and racking up 12 steals by the final buzzer. Arizona Western's advantage on the glass and sharp ball movement translated into a 33-point triumph with no lead changes throughout the night.

Pan, a member of the All-Region I second team, buried four three-pointers en route to 18 points and added three rebounds and two steals. Jenkins scored 15 points on 4-of-11 shooting from long range, finishing second on the team with seven rebounds. Liena contributed 10 points, five rebounds and four assists to round out a balanced attack, while the team compiled 17 assists on 31 field goals.

"Proud of our girls," Matadors head coach Chelsea Dewey said. "We don't want to look too far ahead but it's just go out and play our booties off."

The Lady Matadors finish their final home game of the season with perhaps their most impressive team performance.

"It's what you are striving for as a coach," Dewey said. "You want to play your best basketball in late February and going into March. We got a little tired, you saw us delay a little bit. I'm proud of how they've taken to the coaching in practice and turned around and executed that in the game."

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The Lady Matadors advance to the Region I championship game next week at No. 1 seed and the No. 1 ranked team in the country in Eastern Arizona. 

"They are really good for a reason," Dewey said. "They'll pressure you for 40 minutes and they make every drive body to body, they are physical and at the rim, you have to play for the contact. We know them inside and out and now, can we execute our game plan when we're dog tired. It's another game on the schedule but one that can send us to the national tournament."