Box Score Northridge, Calif. – UC Irvine dominated the boards, but could not capitalize offensively as Cal State Northridge defeated the Anteaters 59-48 at the Matadome Saturday.
UCI out-rebounded Northridge, 45-28, but it was the Matadors who converted on opportunities scoring 24 points on 28 Anteater turnovers.
UCI guards Kelly Meggs, Jennifer Tsurumoto and Vanessa Aguilar paced UCI with nine points each which was a career best for Aguilar. Meggs also grabbed a career-high seven rebounds, four assists and two steals in 38 minutes of action. Forward Camille Buckley came off the bench to record a game-high 12 rebounds and seven points, while forward Cheyenne Cathey added six points.
The duo of Ashley Guay (24) and Marta Masoni (20) led the matadors, scoring most of their points from long range. The pair combined to hit 10-20 from beyond the arc. Violet Alama had a team-best seven rebounds.
After UCI's Jennifer Tsurumoto hit a three-pointer to narrow the deficit to 15-13 with 6:02 to go in the first half, Cal State Northridge scored six straight to open a 21-13 advantage at 4:14.
The Matadors, who held a 28-22 halftime lead, went on a 10-3 run to start the second half and continued to lead 41-28 with 15:16 to play before UCI scored 10 unanswered to close within 41-38 on a Cheyenne Cathey layup at 11:47. The Matadors would go on a 9-3 spurt to extend the lead back to 50-41 with 7:52 remaining. Northridge would outscore UCI 9-7, all on three-pointers, to end the game.
UC Irvine falls to 4-12 overall and 0-4 in the Big West, while Cal State Northridge improves to 10-5 on the year and 4-0 in conference play.
UCI will travel to Cal State Fullerton Thursday (Jan. 17) for a 5:30 p.m. game in Titan Gym. It is the first game of a double-header with the Anteater men following at 8:00 p.m.
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