ARCATA, Calif. – The San Francisco State women's basketball team was edged by Humboldt State 58-56 at Lumberjack Arena Thursday evening. A big third quarter gave the Gators a lead heading into the fourth. The Lumberjacks chipped away at the lead until they reclaimed it with less than three minutes left in the final quarter and did not relinquish it the rest of the way.
- The Gators fall to 3-3 overall and 1-1 in CCAA action. The Lumberjacks improve to 2-3 and 1-0 in the CCAA.
- Mya Blake set a new career high with 20 points to lead the Gators
- Taimane Lesa-Hardee posted a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, half of those being offensive boards
- SF State edged Humboldt 36 to 31 in rebounds.
- The Lumberjack's Julia Iman had a game high 21 points.
After a three from Taimane Lesa-Hardee on the Gator's opening possession, the Lumberjacks landed two quick baskets to reclaim the lead. Humboldt would go up by six in the first quarter but a three from Samaria Velasquez and a step back jumper from Jolene Armendariz cut their lead to one.
Down 11-10 to start the second quarter, Lesa-Hardee gave the Gator's the lead back with a pair of made free throws. After a made basket from Iman, neither team made a basket for over three minutes with multiple missed shots in that stretch. Alexsandra Alvarado's layup gave the Gators the lead back at 14-13 with six minutes left in the quarter. Humboldt reclaimed the lead and took a 19-17 lead into halftime.
The Gator's exploded in the third quarter to outscore the Lumberjacks 27-16. SF State went 6-for-7 from three and led by as much as 11 in the third quarter. Kali Myers' lay-up in the final seconds of the quarter gave the Gators a 44-35 lead.
Humboldt responded with a big offensive output of its own in the final frame. At 2:38, the Lumberjack's lay-up gave them a 51-50 lead. Down 56-54 with 23 seconds left in the game, the Gators were forced to foul to put Humboldt on the free-throw line. Madison Perry made both free throws to put Humboldt State up by four with nine seconds left, essentially icing the game.
"There's no better place to start off a conference away game than Humboldt State," said Head Coach Natasha Smith. "They are a team that protects home court, they're well coached, they're tough, they're disciplined, they know who they are. For us to battle the way that we did and never giving up is a testament to us going in the right direction regardless of the outcome of the game.
"Part of the reason I believe that we lost was because we showed some things that were uncharacteristic of us. Eighteen turnovers and only forcing the opponent to do the exact same. We're usually pretty good at taking care of the ball and forcing it the other way. We will improve on that part, brush it off and get ready for the next game against Sonoma State."
San Francisco State travels closer to home to face Sonoma State on Saturday, December 4. Tipoff is slated for 1 p.m. The game will be broadcast free on the CCAA Network with live stats available at sfstategators.com. Beginning in 2022, the CCAA Network will be moving to a subscription-based model at $9.95 per month. Updates will also be available on Twitter at @sfstate_wbb.
