The confines of Acker Gym were not so friendly to the Chico State women's basketball team during its Saturday showdown with Humboldt State. The Wildcats had won eight straight without a loss at home going into their meeting with the Lumberjacks, with the victor taking over sole possession of third place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). The visiting 'Jacks, which had not lost at Acker since 2012, once again shrugged off the 'Cats home court advantage, leading from wire-to-wire to notch a 69-60 victory.
 
Saturday's loss dropped Chico State to 10-7 overall and into fourth place in the CCAA with an 8-5 conference mark. The Wildcats fall a game behind Humboldt State, which improved to 10-8 on the season and 9-4 in CCAA play.
 
Kayla Taylor was the high scorer for the Wildcats, hitting 7-of-12 shots to finish with 17 points. Whitney Branham added 16 points, with her three 3-point baskets giving the senior 180 for her career, tying her with Chico State legend Kim Abts for the second-most treys in Chico State history.
 
Shay Stark contributed nine points on the night, with McKena Barker adding eight points and a team-high four rebounds for the 'Cats.
 
Humboldt State drew first blood in the opening period, and though the Wildcats quickly tied the contest on a Taylor jumper and two Barker free throws, the Lumberjacks took command thanks to a 15-5 run to grab an early double-digit lead. A jumper by Jo Paine in the final seconds of the quarter brought the 'Cats to within 19-11.
 
With the score 21-11, Chico State jumped back into the contest with a 7-0 run—layups by Stark and Branham coupled with a Barker jumper helped the 'Cats creep to within 21-18. Humboldt immediately answered with a 3-pointer and pushed its advantage back to eight, and the Wildcats went into halftime trailing 31-23.
 
The Lumberjacks threatened to run away with the game early in the third quarter, scoring 13 of the first 17 points to balloon their lead to 44-27. Back came the Wildcats—3-pointers by Branham and Aqeelah Williams, along with a 3-point play by Stark highlighted an 18-7 run to make the score 51-45. Humboldt was able to prevent the 'Cats from whittling the deficit down further, and took a 55-47 lead into the fourth quarter.
 
A pair of jumpers by Taylor in the opening minute of the final 10-minute stanza once again moved Chico State to within six, but that would be as close as the Wildcats would get. The 'Cats were held to just nine points over the final 9:23, allowing Humboldt to slowly push its advantage back into double digits—and with just over two minutes to play, Chico State found itself down by 14.
 
The Wildcats continued to battle, with Branham burying another 3-pointer and Barker sinking a pair of free throws, but it was far too little and far too late as the Lumberjacks easily ran out the clock and rolled to the 69-60 victory, avenging their early season loss to the 'Cats November 18 in Arcata.    
 
The Wildcats will try to rebound on the road next week, traveling to Southern California to take on Cal State Dominguez Hills Friday and Cal State Los Angeles on Saturday. Both games will tip off at 5:30 p.m.