SAN FRANCISCO – Senior Donisha Tate (Oakland, California, Oakland HS, Las Positas College) posted her second double-double of the season to lead the San Francisco State women's basketball team to a 58-46 triumph over Cal State Stanislaus in a California Collegiate Athletic Association game on Saturday in the Main Gymnasium.

 

Tate tied for game-high honors with 14 points while pulling down a game-best 14 rebounds to help the Gators even their record at 4-4 overall and 1-1 in league play. SF State was also sparked by freshman Sidney Dobner (Newbury Park, CA, Newbury Park HS) who tallied a season-high 13 points of her own, while senior Kalia Williams (Los Angeles, Calif., Saint Monica HS, San Jose State) contributed eight points and eight rebounds off the bench.

 

Conversely, the Warriors (1-3, 0-2 CCAA) were paced by Katie Busi, who matched Tate's output of 14 points while adding a team-high nine boards.

 

“Tonight we were able to rebound and secure a much-needed win,” said SF State head coach Joaquin Wallace.  “Donisha established herself on the glass and we were able to run our transition offense."

 

As a team, the Gators shot 41.2 percent for the evening on 21 of 51 attempts from the floor, weathering an 8:50 drought in the second half without a field goal to grind out the victory. Meanwhile, CSUS, which connected on 19 of its 54 field goal tries (35.2 percent) for the game, was just 4-for-11 from the free-throw line, compared to SF State's 15-for-24 clip from the charity stripe. The Gators also owned a 40-35 advantage in rebounds, as well as a 12-9 edge in steals.

 

SF State, which never trailed in the contest, broke open a tight 7-5 ballgame in the first half with a 7-0 outburst, punctuated by a Tate layup, to go up 14-5 at the 9:18 mark. After three straight free throws by the Warriors' Jeanette Rowe, the Gators fashioned an 18-9 run over a 6:44 stretch, as another layup by Tate gave the home team a comfortable 32-17 cushion with 1:42 left on the clock. Then following a 3-point basket by CSUS' Kellyn Lees, freshman Nicole Hicks (Santa Clarita, Calif., Saugus HS) nailed a jumper on SF State's next foray up the court with four ticks on the clock to give the contest its 34-20 halftime score.

  

After intermission, the Warriors were able to narrow the gap down to single digits in the first four minutes of the second period as a Busi layup drew the visitors to within 35-26 at the 16:06 mark. The Gators responded with an 8-0 run, however, as Williams' layup off a perfect entry pass from senior ZaLisha Oliver (Sacramento, Calif., Luther Burbank HS) gave the Purple and Gold its biggest lead of the night at 43-26 with 14:02 left.

 

CSUS then reeled off five straight points on a 3-pointer and a layup by Nathalie Olveda to trim the deficit to 43-31 at the 13:15 mark. SF State answered with a Williams layup, but would not score another field goal until 3:27 remained on the clock. In the interim, the Gators kept the visitors at bay as Oliver and Williams each sank a pair of foul shots, putting the host school up 49-35 at the 7:05 mark.

 

The Warriors threatened to make a game of it at this juncture as a layup by Samantha Bertomen capped a 7-0 run, pulling CSUS to within 49-42 with 4:23 left. The two sides traded baskets, including a tip-in by Tate which broke SF State's field goal drought, while Busi answered with a layup at the other end. Then with the shot-clock winding down on the Gators' next trip up the floor, Dobner drilled a 3-pointer at the buzzer to restore SF State's double-digit lead at 54-44 with just 1:37 left on the clock, effectively putting the game out of reach.

 

The Gators will embark on their first conference road trip next Wednesday, Dec. 9, when they travel to Seaside, Calif., to battle Cal State Monterey Bay beginning at 5:30 p.m.

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