Box Score SAN RAFAEL – Nearly two years ago, the Chico State women's basketball team traveled to San Rafael and were unceremoniously handed a 51-48 defeat by Dominican University. Saturday afternoon at the Conlan Center, the 2013-14 edition of the Wildcats made sure that their season opener would yield a much more positive result – despite a slow start, the No. 17 'Cats finished strong, scoring 52 second half points to power past the host Penguins 88-60.
Four Chico State players scored in double figures. Hannah Womack hit nine of 12 shots to finish with 23 points while adding seven rebounds and five assists. Jazmine Miller went 5-for-6 from beyond the 3-point arc to net 20 points on the day; Analise Riezebos registered a career-high 18 points, and McKenzie Dalthorp contributed 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds.
The Wildcats made the most of their scoring opportunities, shooting 55 percent from the field and 56 percent from behind the 3-point line. The Chico State defense was tenacious, forcing Dominican to commit 24 turnovers on the afternoon.
In the first half, Chico State used buckets by Riezebos, Womack and Dalthorp to grab an early 6-2 lead. The Wildcat offense then went ice cold, going scoreless for over five minutes as Dominican ripped off a 15-2 run to go up 17-8. The 'Cats quickly recovered to tie the score at 22-all – Riezebos contributing four layups during the rally.
Dominican scored five unanswered points to go back up 27-22, but that's when Miller got hot, hitting three 3-pointers to lead a 14-4 Chico State run to close out the half and give the Wildcats a 36-31 lead at intermission.
The Penguins scored the first five points of the second half to pull even, but Miller again dialed long-distance to kick-start the 'Cats' offense, knocking down two more treys, and a four-point play by Womack capped an 18-3 run to open up a 54-39 lead. Dominican could get no closer than 14 the rest of the way.
Chico State effectively put the game away with a late 10-0 run – highlighted by a Miller 3-point play and a 3-point bucket by Womack – to extend the Wildcats' advantage to 78-54. Baskets by Tyler Prange and Jessica Palmer as time wound down put the bow on Chico State's season-opening victory, downing Dominican by a final of 88-60.
The Wildcats will play their first home game of the season Tuesday, when Fresno Pacific visits Acker Gym for the 41st annual Coslet Classic. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
