WOMEN'S BASKETBALL DROPS CONFERENCE OPENER TO PORTLAND STATE 81-69
1/3/2008
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The Sacramento State women’s basketball team dropped their conference opener to the visiting Portland State Vikings by a final score of 81-69 on Jan. 3 at the Hornets Nest.
With the loss, the Hornets fall to 2-11 on the season, and 0-1 in Big Sky Conference play, while the Vikings improve to 11-3, 1-0 in the Big Sky.
The first half of action saw the Vikings take early command, opening the contest on an 8-2 run to take a lead they would never relinquish. Sacramento State would cut the margin of deficit down to one at 14-13 with 14:26 remaining the half, but the Vikings would go on to build a 10 point lead on four occasions in the half.
With the score 36-26 with 3:54 remaining in the half, the Hornets went on a 10-0 run over the next 2:04. Sophomore Erika Edwards (Redmond, Wash.) scored all seven of her first half points in a row, and freshman Tika Koshiyama-Diaz (San Jose, Calif.) knocked down a three-pointer to tie the score at 36-36 with 1:31 remaining. The Vikings went on to score the final five points of the half to take a 41-36 lead into the intermission.
Sacramento State came out of the locker room determined to climb back in the contest. They embarked on a 9-4 run to tie the score at 45-45, as freshman Jasmine Cannady (Sacramento, Calif.) connected on her second three-pointer of the game and knocked down a pair of free throws during the stretch. The Vikings would retake a four point lead at 49-45, before sophomore Charday Hunt (Oregon City, Ore.) connecting on a three-point play to pull the Hornets back to within one with 13:09 remaining.
That would be as close as the Hornets would get, however, as Portland State went on a 9-0 run over the next 3:59 to build back a 10 point lead. The Vikings helped their cause by knocking home 15-of-18 from the foul line in the final five minutes to take home a 12 point victory, which marked their largest lead of the game.
Junior Kelsey Kahle led the way for the Vikings with 22 points, while freshman Kelli Valentine added 16. Sophomore Clair Faucher posted a near triple-double, scoring 15 points, dishing out 12 assists and pulling down nine rebounds.
Edwards finished with a career-high 17 points to lead the Hornets, while adding a game-high 12 rebounds for her second career double-double. Hunt finished with 11 points on the contest, connecting on a perfect 5-of-5 from the charity stripe. Cannady finished with a career-high as well, scoring 10 points, including a career-high 2-of-4 mark from beyond the three-point arc.
The Hornets outrebounded the Vikings 40-33, but allowed Portland State to shoot 48.2 percent (27-of-56) for the game from the field, and 73.3 percent (22-of-30) from the foul line.
Sacramento State will be back in action on Saturday, Jan. 5 as they host the Eastern Washington Eagles. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:05 p.m. from the Hornets Nest.
