IRVINE, Calif. – UC Irvine women's basketball had three players score in double figures but that wasn't enough to overcome a hot-shooting Cal State Bakersfield team in an 86-66 loss Saturday afternoon at the Bren Events Center.

Freshman Brooke Bayman had the best game of her young UCI career with a season-high 15 points, eight assists and four steals. She went 5-for-8 from the field and 5-of-5 from the free throw line. Bayman, who committed only two turnovers, is the second Anteater to dish out at least eight assists this year as senior Irene Chavez also had nine at Nevada.

Junior Sabrina Engelstad finished with a team-best 17 points, one shy of her season high. Senior Shereen Sutherland added 12 points and eight rebounds, while sophomore Andee Ritter chipped in nine points on a trio of 3-pointers.

The 'Eaters won the battle on the boards, 34-32, but the Roadrunners were hard to slow down as they finished the game shooting 53.3 percent (32-60) from the floor, 50 percent (10-20) from behind the arc and 80 percent (12-15) from the charity stripe.  

Behind a 9-of-14 shooting performance, including 4-of-6 from long distance, Bakersfield built an early 23-9 first quarter lead. Engelstad had seven of UC Irvine's nine points in the period.

The 'Runners got even hotter in the second frame where they made eight of 11 field goal attempts (72.7 percent). They used a 19-6 run to pull ahead, 42-15, at the 2:36 mark. UCI then made a late push as it outscored the visitors, 8-2, over the final two minutes to close the gap to 44-32 at the break.

The Anteaters (1-10) continued to rally in the third as Ritter opened the scoring with their first 3-pointer of the afternoon. The two teams would trade points over the next couple minutes before Chavez's trey started a 13-6 spurt that cut the deficit to 54-41 with 4:52 remaining. Ritter hit two more threes during that stretch, while Bayman capped the run with a driving layup.

That was the closest the 'Eaters would get, however, as CSUB responded with six unanswered to build its lead back to 19. Despite UC Irvine shooting 64.3 percent in the period, the visitors pulled ahead 64-45 at the end of three.

UCI continued to put points on the board in the fourth, but Bakersfield matched that effort and stayed out front by at least 17 en route to the 86-66 victory.

CSU Bakersfield (4-7) tied its season high with 10 3-pointers made. Erika Williams paced the Roadrunners with a game-high 19 points, while Addi Walters had 12 as she went 4-for-5 from beyond the arc.

UC Irvine is back in action on Monday, Dec. 19, when it welcomes Southern Utah to the Bren Events Center for a 7 p.m. showdown.

NOTES: UC Irvine registered two 20-point quarters for the second time this season and fifth overall since women's basketball switched to the four-period format in 2015-16 … The 'Eaters allowed more than 80 points for only the second time in 11 games … Andee Ritter has made a 3-pointer in 11-straight contests and leads the team with 26 on the year … Ritter did not record a steal for the first time since the Fresno State game on Nov. 26 … Sabrina Engelstad has reached double figures in scoring in eight of the last nine outings … Shereen Sutherland has had at least eight rebounds in eight of 11 games played … Brooke Bayman scored in double digits for the second time this season, and first since she had 13 in the opener vs. Saint Louis … Teirra Hicks had seven points, all of which came in the fourth quarter ... Those were her first points since Nov. 19 at Idaho State … Hicks suffered an ankle injury at LMU on Nov. 25 and missed three of the next five games … Mckenzie Piper, who also missed five games with an injury, made her first start in a month.

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