The UCSD women’s basketball team traveled to Carson, Calif., to challenge Cal State Dominguez Hills on Jan. 21 and Pomona, Calif., to play Cal Poly Pomona on Jan. 22, but fell short by five points in both games. The Tritons fall to a 8-7 overall record and a 4-4 league split.
The Tritons lost to Cal State Dominguez Hills (8-5 overall, 6-1 CCAA) at the Torodome Arena, 61-56.
Top players in the game for the Tritons included senior center Margaret Johnson, with 15 points and a game-high 23 rebounds. Only four of Johnson’s 15 points were field goals; she made 7-of-9 in free-throw attempts.
Sophomore guard Leora Juster posted 11 points and senior center Stacy Gallagher-Bolton added eight. Junior guard Andrea Herold and sophomore forward Hillary Hansen also posted eight points apiece.
UCSD struggled to score throughout the game, averaging only 30 percent in field goals. The Tritons went only 2-for-19 in three-point shooting in the game, and 0-for-11 in the second half. By the end of the first half, the Tritons trailed by four points, 28-24.
Tameka Blue led scoring for the Toros with 18 points. Brittney Blankenship and Octavia Askew added 11 and eight points, respectively, to help the Toros clinch the win.
The next game for the Tritons was against CCAA opponent Cal Poly Pomona (11-4 overall, 6-2 CCAA) at the Kellogg Gym. UCSD fell to the Broncos, 83-78, in another tough bout.
The Tritons struggled once again in field-goal scoring. Despite the one-point deficit at halftime, UCSD could not pull through in the second half. The Tritons had a 39-percent field-goal percentage and made 2-of-8 three-point attempts for the second half. The Tritons only made half of the free throws granted to them. Comparatively, the Broncos fared well with a 42-percent field-goal percentage and 61-percent from the free-throw line.
Top scorers in the loss included four Tritons in double digits. Herold had a strong game, posting 19 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Juster added 17 points and Gallagher-Bolton had 13. Junior forward Karina Siam posted 11 points, with nine rebounds. Johnson had 10 rebounds in the match.
Key players for the Broncos included Candice Allen and Brandi Fletcher, who each posted 18 points, and Allen with 15 rebounds. Natasha Deed also added 12 points for the Broncos to take the win.
After a tough weekend away, the Tritons will return home to attempt to avenge their losses at RIMAC arena on Jan. 28 against Sonoma State and Jan. 29 against San Francisco State, both with 5:30 p.m. tip-offs.
UCSD was winless last season against Sonoma State, falling twice by five-point margins to Sonoma State.
The Tritons were undefeated against San Francisco State throughout 2004, claiming more than ten-point victories in both contests.
