LA JOLLA, Calif. – The Cal State San Marcos women's basketball team was not able to hold on to its first half lead, falling to No. 17 Azusa Pacific, 84-69, on Friday afternoon in the UC San Diego Thanksgiving Classic held at RIMAC Arena.
 
"I am really proud of these guys," said head coach Renee Jimenez. "We are so much better than we were two weeks ago and tonight's score was definitely not indicative of the game we played. We have set them up to play some of the best teams in the West Region and they have really embraced the challenge. We are very close to being elite, but we have to be able to stay focused and disciplined on the defensive end for 40 minutes."
 
CSUSM drops to 0-3 on the season while APU improves to 8-1 overall.
 
Junior Baylee Olsen scored 15 of her team-high 18 points in the first half and went 4-of-6 from behind the arc. Senior Savannah Camp tacked on 12 points and six rebounds while sophomore Juliet Jones added eight points and eight assists. Sophomore Brianna Porter chipped in nine points.
 
CSUSM shot 63.5 percent from behind the arc in the first half to take a 43-46 lead into the locker room. CSUSM led by as much as 12 points (41-29) with three minutes remaining in the second quarter.
 
Tied at 54-54 at the end of the third quarter, APU out-scored CSUSM 30-15 in the final 10 minutes.
 
CSUSM shot only 30.8 percent (8-of-26) from the field and 11.1 percent (1-of-9) from the 3-point line in the second half.
 
Abbigail Goodsell and Casey Wortley scored 21 and 20 points, respectively, for APU.
 
CSUSM concludes its nonconference schedule on Saturday, Nov. 25 when the Cougars face Dominican at 1 p.m. in the UCSD Thanksgiving Classic.