ROHNERT PARK, Calif. – Makenzi Laporte walked into the Wolves' Den needing six points to reach 1,000 in her career. Going up against a resilient Sonoma State team, the senior scored seven points to reach the millennial mark, but Chico State couldn't overcome the host's defense as the Seawolves escaped with a 61-58 win over the Wildcats on Saturday.
 
Laporte's 1,000^th career point came at perhaps her greatest strength this season: on the free throw line at the 6:02 mark in the third quarter. She becomes the 11^th player in program history to reach 1,000 career points and along with 500 career rebounds, she becomes the fifth player in Chico State history to do so.
 
With the difficult loss, Chico State falls to 13-3 overall and 8-2 in the CCAA while Sonoma moves to 7-8 overall and 5-4 in conference play.
 
The Wildcats were limited to 37.9 percent (22-for-58) from the field, with much of the misses were unlucky shots in the paint. Meadow Aragon led Chico State with 14 points and 12 rebounds for her third straight game with a double-double. Ciarah Michalik, hailing from Santa Rosa, stepped up by scoring a season-high 13 points in her homecoming.
 
Jadence Clifton and Ashleigh Barr, another Santa Rosa native playing in front of a hometown crowd, each scored nine points for Chico State. Barr also had six rebounds along with Laporte and Allred.
 
Sonoma State, which ranks last in the CCAA in field goal percentage at 20 percent, did not show that at all, making 38.2 percent (26-for-68) on the afternoon. Jennifer Moreno led both teams with 19 points while Alysa Lopez had 11.
 
Free throws certainly played a role in the game. Chico State went 9-for-15 on the line with Michalik making five of them while Sonoma State went 4-for-11.
 
Both teams got off to a sluggish start. It wasn't until around 3:30 into the game that the drought ended, when Sonoma State's Sheriene Arikat got a layup in for the first score. Laporte followed nearly two minutes later with a 3-pointer to get Chico State on the board.
 
Chico State had trailed by three early into the second period until it ignited a 10-0 run moved the Wildcats ahead 22-16 with past the halfway point in the period. That 10-point run would be the longest in the game for Chico State.
 
Starting the second half with ahead 30-25, Chico State had defended the lead up until the back end of the third quarter, when Sonoma State went on an 11-1 run to move up front 48-43 at the end of the period. Aragon did get the Wildcats back into the game by scoring six points in the span of three minutes to put her team up 49-48. The final three minutes turned out to be Wildcats doom. Sonoma State outscored Chico State 7-3 in the final minutes and the Wildcats committed three crucial turnovers in attempt to at least tie the game.
 
The Wildcats return home for the ultimate test, taking on undefeated Cal State Dominguez Hills Thursday at 5:30 p.m. The Toros, who are ranked third in the nation by the Women's Basketball Coaches' Association, are coming off a 93-47 home win over San Francisco State this afternoon.
 
Postgame Notes
• Despite the loss, Chico State still owns the all-time series with Sonoma State 72-24. The two longtime rivals first met in 1971 and the Wildcats had won the first 15 games.
• Head coach Brian Fogel, in his 17^th season at the helm, is 262-176 in his career. He is currently chasing Fran Coslet's program record 286 wins.
• Chico State, which ranks second in the West Region in field goal percentage at 45.3, was held to under 40 percent for the fourth time this season. The other games they were deeply underperformed from the field were all on the road at Stanislaus State (35.7) and at Academy of Art (38.7) and at Jessup (27.3).
• The seven blocks the Wildcats made today were the second most this season. The most blocks Chico State made in a game was against Cal State San Bernardino (Jan. 11).
• Michalik's last season-high in points was 12 against Cal Poly Pomona (Jan. 9).