The Chico State women's basketball team knew it faced a challenging home stand upon taking the floor Thursday night at Acker Gym. The Wildcats, battling for a postseason conference tournament berth, would be hosting the California Collegiate Athletic Association's top two teams, and the opening opponent on the docket was first place UC San Diego. The 'Cats, looking to avenge an early season loss to the Tritons, proved they were up to the challenge, giving the conference leaders all they handle for 40 minutes before finally falling in overtime by a score of 69-61.
Chico State slipped to 12-9 on the season with Thursday's loss, while also dropping to seventh place in the CCAA standings with an 8-7 conference record. UC San Diego raised its overall mark to 18-4 and its conference-best record to 14-3.
Though the Wildcats came back from six points down in the final 3:16 of regulation to force the overtime period, Chico State did not experience a great shooting night, hitting only 29.6 percent of its field goal attempts. The lone exceptions, though, were Myli Martinez and Haley Ison: Martinez nailed four 3-pointers on the way to a career 18-point scoring performance, while also grabbing a personal best seven rebounds. Ison was 5-for-9 from the field and added 10 points to the 'Cats' attack. Shay Stark contributed eight points, pulled down a career-high 11 rebounds, and doled out five assists.
The contest began on a positive note, with Martinez converting a 3-point play to put the Wildcats quickly on top. A 3-pointer by Mikaila Wegenke pushed Chico State's advantage to 12-8, but they were shut out over the final three minutes of the period. UC San Diego scored five unanswered points to finish the quarter with a 13-12 lead.
Both offenses began to heat up in the second period. Martinez and Brynn Thoming each drained 3-pointers to help Chico State regain the lead at 20-16, only to see the Tritons go on a 13-4 run to move back in front 29-24. The Wildcats fought back, and thanks to another 3-pointer and a pair of free throws by Martinez, a Wegenke charity toss, and a basket by Ison, Chico State closed to within 33-32 at halftime.
UC San Diego scored the first eight points of the third quarter to build its lead to nine, and though they trailed the rest of the period, the Wildcats continued to claw, with Martinez and Stark each burying a 3-pointer to make the score 47-43. The quarter ended with Martinez and Vanessa Holland knocking down four free throws between them, and a jumper by Ison pulled the 'Cats to within 51-48 heading in the final 10-minute stanza.
The Tritons were able to keep Chico State at bay for the first seven minutes of the fourth quarter, stretching their lead to six at 61-55. The Wildcats prevented UC San Diego from scoring again, while combining a pair of Hannah Washington layups and a basket by Maddy Wong to knot up the contest at 61-all. Both teams had a chance to win in regulation, but both potential game-winning shots were off the mark, sending the game into overtime.
Unfortunately for the 'Cats, they used up all their bullets coming back to tie the game. Chico State missed all 12 of its field goal attempts in the extra period, while UC San Diego took the lead for good by nailing a 3-pointer in the first minute of OT. The Tritons then salted the contest away with five free throws down the stretch, sending the Wildcats to a frustrating 69-61 defeat.
The Wildcats are back in action Saturday, hosting the Cougars of Cal State San Marcos (17-4, 12-4 CCAA) at Acker Gym. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
