POCATELLO, Idaho - The UC Irvine women's basketball team trailed by only four with six minutes to play, but Idaho State made the final push to hold on for the 65-54 victory Saturday evening at Reed Gym.
UCI (0-4) shot 36.8 percent from the field and made five 3-pointers. Juniors Teirra Hicks and Sabrina Engelstad each recorded their second-straight double-figure scoring game. Hicks netted a season-best and game-high tying 14 points. Engelstad also had 10 points as she went 3-for-3 from the field and 4-of-6 from the free throw line. Senior Shereen Sutherland added nine points and eight rebounds.
Senior Irene Chavez made a pair of threes for a season-best six points, while classmate Brittany Glassow pulled down a season-high five rebounds.
UC Irvine raced out to a 6-0 lead before Idaho State got on the board at the 7:25 mark. The Anteaters kept the momentum as they went up, 10-2, following an Engelstad layup. The Bengals closed the gap to four before a 3-pointer from sophomore Andee Ritter put UCI on top, 16-9, with 2:03 to go. The 'Eaters were then held scoreless the rest of the quarter, allowing ISU to pull even at 16-16.
Idaho State (1-2) scored the first five points of the second period for a 21-16 advantage, but UC Irvine came storming back with a 7-0 run to reclaim the lead at 23-21 with 7:21 remaining. Hicks sparked the rally with five-straight points. ISU responded with a 12-2 spurt of its own for a 33-25 edge at the 2:51 mark. The 'Eaters then outscored the home team, 6-4, over the final two minutes to cut the deficit to 37-31 at the break.
UCI quickly knotted it up at 37-37 in the third as back-to-back jumpers from Engelstad, along with a Hicks layup, resulted in the fourth tie of the evening. The Bengals then went on a 15-8 run to close out the frame and pull ahead, 52-45.
In the fourth period, ISU pushed its lead to 10 before a 3-pointer from Glassow and a traditional three-point play by freshman Brooke Bayman made it 55-51 with 6:12 to go. The home team would then score the next 10 points, putting the game out of reach. Idaho State made only two field goals in the quarter, but the Bengals were in the bonus just four minutes in and went 8-of-10 from the free throw line to seal the 65-54 victory.
Grace Kenyon led Idaho State with 14 points and nine rebounds. The Bengals shot 37.1 percent from the field and 38.9 percent from behind the arc. They also outrebounded the 'Eaters, 46-35.
UC Irvine now returns to Southern California where it will make its fourth-straight appearance in the LMU Thanksgiving Classic, Nov. 25-26. The Anteaters are set to face host Loyola Marymount on Friday and Fresno State on Saturday.
NOTES: Teirra Hicks was only two points shy of her career high with a season-best 14 … Sabrina Engelstad is averaging 11.5 points over the last two games … Andee Ritter has made a 3-pointer in all four contests … She had her first two-point field goal tonight as nine of her 10 FGs on the season have come from behind the arc … Brooke Bayman tied her season high with four assists ... Starting senior forward Mckenzie Piper did not play against the Bengals ... After averaging 15 turnovers in the first two outings, the 'Eaters have committed at least 20 in each of the last two games.
_________________________________________________________________
For UC Irvine Athletics ticket information, please call (949) 824-5000 or e-mail athletics.tickets@uci.edu. For more information click here.
For information on how you can help support UC Irvine Athletics, please call (949) 824-6933 or e-mail aaf@uci.edu. For additional information, click here.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter and by downloading the UCI Front Row app, available free to all Anteater fans through iTunes and Google Play, to view schedules, results, and up-to-the-minute news.
