SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Sophomore Katelyn Ciampi tallied a team-high 14 points and 10 rebounds but Montana State used a late second half run to defeat the Sacramento State women’s basketball team, 66-48, Saturday evening at Hornet Field. The game marked the final home game of the 2003-04 season for the Hornets. Sacramento State is now 1-25 overall and 1-12 in the Big Sky while Montana State improved to 13-12, 4-8.
Ciampi, a native of Martinez, Calif., was the only Hornet to score in double figures after going 7-for-12 from field. Ciampi has now recorded double-figure scoring in nine games this season and has recorded double-digit rebounds in consecutive games. The forward also led the Hornets with a game-high two blocked shots. Senior Diane Peterson led the Hornets with three assists while junior Tyeisha Brown tallied a game-high three steals.
Jana Smith led the Bobcats with a game-high 28 points after going 10-of-13 from the field (including a 5-for-6 effort from behind the three-point line) and 3-of-3 from the charity stripe. She also finished with a contest-high 11 rebounds. Katie Burrows (18) also scored in double figures for the Bobcats.
In the first half, Sacramento State jumped out to an early 12-2 lead (14:48) before the Bobcats used a 14-7 run to cut the deficit to 17-16 with 10:38 remaining. The Hornets increased their advantage to 21-16 after a pair of free throws by junior Kristine Knowlton (7:59) until MSU used an 8-0 run to take a 26-21 lead (4:11). The two sides traded baskets until the Bobcats went into halftime with a 29-25 advantage.
In the second half, Sacramento State opened the period with a 7-2 run to regain the lead 32-31 with 18:31 remaining. MSU regained control with a 14-6 run to make it 45-38 at the 13:54 mark. The Hornets cut the deficit to 47-43 on a jumper by freshman Stephanie Cherry (9:40) before the Bobcats responded with a 15-2 run to lead 62-45 with 2:14 remaining and seal the game.
Overall, Sacramento State went 17-for-67 (.254) from the floor while Montana State ended the contest shooting 23-for-50 (.460). The Hornets also finished 9-for-13 (.692) from the free-throw line compared to the Bobcats’ 14-for-19 (.737) effort. MSU also connected better from behind the arc with a 6-of-13 (.462) effort compared to Sacramento State’s 5-of-28 (.179).
The contest marked the final home game for seniors Cindy Besio, Sydney Gatson, Danielle Iceman and Diane Peterson. Gatson did not play in the game due to a season ending knee injury on Feb. 12.
Sacramento State will complete the 2003-04 season at Northern Arizona on Saturday, Mar. 6, at 7:05 p.m.
