Spirit Night 2002

    It was an exciting weekend for the UCSD women’s basketball team, to say the least.

    Colin Young-Wolff
    Guardian

    On Friday night, the Tritons overcame a poor shooting performance in the first half to beat California State University Dominguez Hills 52-48 in front of the Spirit Night crowd.

    Shooting 4-for-20 from the field in the first half, the Tritons found themselves fortunate to be down by only three points, 23-20, by the end of the half.

    “”They played us just the way I would have played us,”” said UCSD head coach Judy Malone. “”They took us out of everything we wanted to do.””

    Anna MacMurdo
    Guardian

    The Toros’ relentless defense kept the Tritons away from the basket and denied them the passing lanes.

    “”At halftime, we went in and invented some offenses with more dribble penetration,”” Malone said.

    These new offenses were effective. Forward Danyiel Wortham led the balanced Triton offensive attack with 12 points and eight rebounds. Freshman center Margaret Johnson was the top Triton rebounder with 11, to go along with her nine points. Stacy Gallagher-Bolton also chipped in with seven rebounds off the bench in only 16 minutes.

    “”Stacy really cleaned the boards underneath tonight,”” Malone said.

    UCSD improved its shooting to 40 percent in the second half.

    “”The crowd got us pumped,”” said senior point guard Maya Fok. “”Don’t get me wrong, I love the crowd, but we may have rushed our shots a little.””

    The lead changed hands numerous times in the second half until UCSD guard Ali Ginn drove to the basket with just over three minutes left to put the Tritons up for good. Ginn ended the game with nine points and nine rebounds.

    Saturday night, the Tritons had revenge on their minds. Coming off a 13-point loss to the Eagles on Jan. 4, UCSD looked to return the favor.

    Both teams came out hot, shooting over 50 percent, and when the halftime horn rang the game was tied at 37.

    The second half was nip-and-tuck, and with four minutes left the Golden Eagles led 61-59.

    Down by two, the Tritons began to turn it on. Led by guards Ginn, who scored a team-high 16 points, and Fok (14 points, six assists), UCSD began to pull away.

    After a no-look pass by Margaret Johnson that resulted in a Triton layup, the Golden Eagles began to foul. Then UCSD found its touch from the free throw line.

    “”They started fouling way too early,”” Malone said. “”We were struggling to find a shot.””

    After making only 21 of 39 free throws in the previous three halves, the Tritons sunk 14 of 19 in the second half including 10 of their last 12 to seal the game.

    “”Making free throws was the key,”” said Bromley, who finished with 14 points and five rebounds. “”Our coaches stay on top of our conditioning and tonight we were in better physical and mental shape.””

    Katie McGann made a layup in the final minute to cap the 76-68 victory.

    “”This was a good win for us”” Malone said. “”They really took it to us at their place.””

    UCSD’s weekend sweep was its first of the season in conference play and moved them into a tie for fifth place in the CCAA with Cal State Los Angeles.

    Next up is a trip to Cal State San Bernardino on Friday, followed by a visit to defending CCAA and Division II national champion Cal Poly Pomona on Saturday.

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