The Oaks, who enjoyed a good bit of fortune earlier in the week when it jumped into second place in the conference standings after California Maritime was forced to forfeit its first six Cal Pac victories, were anything but lucky after halftime against Simpson. The Red Hawks made 17-of-24 field goal attempts in the second half and used a 22-3 run to take the lead. The same run was extended to a 37-10 scoring advantage during a 15-minute stretch.

In the first half it was Menlo who used a dominant spurt to bolt into a big lead it carried into the second half.

Trailing 10-5, senior forward Liane Kobori got the Oaks moving in the right direction with a pair of free throws. Fellow senior Katelyn Guild added a basket inside and Gianna Covarelli followed with a 3-pointer to put Menlo ahead 12-10. Covarelli canned another from long range 28 seconds later to force the reeling Red Hawks to call a timeout.

Simpson answered with its only point of the 22-1 Oaks run via a Kylie Shaw free throw, but Menlo continued to roll. Senoj Jones, Covarelli, and Ayala each hit from the field, then Jones and Covarelli sank back-to-back 3-pointers for a 27-11 Menlo advantage with six minutes left in the half.

Stephanie Truong extended the lead to 17 with a 3-pointer before Brittany Taylor made one of her own to give the Oaks their biggest lead of the night at 33-15. Menlo led 33-18 at halftime.

Truong scored to put the Oaks ahead 37-20, but that's when the game turned dramatically. Simpson scored 22 of the next 25 points to take the lead, though it was just a 42-40 difference. The Red Hawks continued their surge by adding a 15-7 spurt for a 57-47 lead that was too much for Menlo to overcome.

Menlo annihilated Simpson on the offensive glass, outrebounding the Red Hawks 17-3, but couldn't convert the extra chances into points. The Oaks shot only 9-of-37 from the field in the second half. Scorching Simpson needed 13 fewer attempts to make nearly twice as many shots (17) as the Oaks.

Guild came through with a double-double for Menlo, scoring 13 points with 15 rebounds. Covarelli was the Oaks high scorer, netting 16 points and shooting 4-for-4 on 3-pointers while Truong added a dozen points.

Shaw had 15 points and six rebounds to lead Simpson. Alyssa Foster finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds, Paige Barrett scored 13, and Dominique Simmons netted 12.

Menlo finished its regular season at 8-4 in the Cal Pac and 13-12 overall. The Oaks are the No. 2 seed in the conference tournament and will host an opening round game. Simpson finishes 7-5 in conference and 8-23 overall.