CHICO, Calif. – The Cal State San Marcos women's basketball team collected its first California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) road victory with a 71-63 win at Chico State on Saturday night at Art Acker Gymnasium.
The Cougars improve to 3-4 overall and 2-2 in CCAA action while Chico State (4-4, 0-3 CCAA) drops its fourth consecutive game.
"I'm really proud of our kids and extremely happy for them," said head coach
Renee Jimenez. "Chico is such a tough place to play but an even more fun place to win! The team locked in and played hard for 40 minutes.
"They really grew up tonight as a team and are understanding how hard you have to play every single possession to get wins in the CCAA."
Junior
Ashley Ontiveros led the way for CSUSM with a season-best 22 points. Sophomores
Savannah Camp and
Lynette Mackey contributed 13 and 10 points, respectively, with each pulling down seven rebounds.
Down 33-26 at halftime, the Cougars mounted their biggest quarter of the season as they tallied 29 points in the third to take a 55-49 into the final frame. CSUSM led by as many as 11 points.
The Wildcats charged back, knotting the score at 63-63 with 1:19 remaining. The Cougars broke through a full court press and sophomore
Paige Barber sunk a 3-pointer from the corner with just over a minute on the clock. CSUSM made 5-of-8 at the charity stripe to clinch the victory.
CSUSM capitalized on Chico State's ball handling errors, scoring 27 points on the Wildcats' 20 turnovers.
Whitney Branham led the Wildcat offense with 16 points and McKena Barker added 10 points.
The Cougars take a break for finals and the holidays, returning to the court on New Year's Eve at Cal State Dominguez Hills.
