Box Score
Box score

TURLOCK, Calif. – An early second-half run for Cal State Stanislaus led to a 73-49 loss for the Cal State East Bay women's basketball team on Friday night at Fitzpatrick Arena. The Pioneers (0-11, 0-7 CCAA) trailed by just 11 at the half, but could not find their shooting touch at the start of the second frame of their second of three games this week.

The Pioneers had a pair reach double figures in sophomore forwards Marlene MacMillan and Lauren Lucchesi, who contributed 15 and 10 points, respectively. MacMillan posted her fifth double-digit rebound game and first double-double of the season, pulling down 15 boards. The Pioneer bench was active, as Kristina Lin and Brianna Terrance added six points apiece. East Bay shot 41.9 percent from the field but struggled from the free-throw line where it missed out on 13 points, shooting just 48 percent from the charity stripe in the game.

“We defended the three well but gave up too many easy baskets in transition tonight,” East Bay Head Coach Suzy Barcomb said. “Marlene had a nice all-around performance and I thought Kristina gave us a great spark.”

Cal State Stanislaus was led by leading scorer Katie Busi's 20-point, 11-rebound double-double that saw here shoot 8-for-12 from the field and go 4-for-5 from the free-throw line. Andreanna Marshall and CCAA Player of the Week Christin Gowan joined Busi in double figures with 15 and 12 points, respectively. The Warriors shot nearly 50 percent from the field and forced 28 Pioneer turnovers, scoring 29 points off those miscues, while out-rebounding East Bay 32-27.

After the Pioneers opened the game with a two-point lead on a MacMillan jumper, the Warriors answered back to take a 6-2 lead at the 15:50 mark. The two teams traded buckets before CSUS opened up a 12-point lead, 18-6, with a 12-4 run. East Bay responded, however, closing the gap to just two with a 18-8 run of its own. During the seven-minute run, the Pioneers shared the ball, with MacMillan scoring five, Lucchesi putting away a three and a layup and Terrance scoring four.

Leading 26-24 with 4:56 remaining, Stanislaus regained control, opening up a 38-27 lead before the half was done. The Warriors finished the half shooting 46.7 percent, but went just 1-of-8 from three-point range. CSUS took advantage of its 11 chances at the free-throw line, though, converting on eight foul shots in the first half. The Pioneers went 11-for-28 from the field in the opening frame, knocking down a pair of threes and four of their five free throws. East Bay struggled to hold onto the ball, however, committing 14 turnovers in the initial 20 minutes.

The Warriors came out of the break on fire, building a 30-point advantage over the first 10 minutes of the second half with a 26-7 run. A Marshall jumper with 19:35 remaining sparked the run that saw her score 11 points and notch two steals, an assist and a rebound and finished with a three from Gowan to bring the Stanislaus lead to 64-34 with 10:02 remaining.

Dotson closed the gap back to 28 with a jumper at the 8:31 mark, her second straight bucket for the Pioneers, but the Warriors answered right back with four points to regain a 32-point advantage. From there, Stanislaus never trailed by fewer than 29 points until the final two minutes, when East Bay pulled back within 24, 73-49, thanks to four points and a steal from Cassie Coble in less than a minute. Despite drawing eight fouls over the last seven minutes, the Pioneers could not convert from the charity stripe, going 7-for-18 at the foul line during that span.

“We wanted to get to the free-throw line and we did, but we need to hit at a much higher percentage,” Barcomb said.

Cal State East Bay returns to action tomorrow night when it travels to Chico State. The Pioneers and 20th-ranked Wildcats (9-2, 5-2) are set for a 5:30 p.m. tip at Acker Gym. Chico lost for just the second time this season, falling to UC San Diego, 73-53, on Friday night.