POCATELLO, Idaho – UC Irvine women's basketball closed out their first road trip of the season with a 61-49 loss to Idaho State Wednesday evening at Reed Gym.
 
The Anteaters (1-2) never led and struggled to get into an offensive rhythm until the fourth quarter when they shot 60% from the field and outscored the Bengals, 17-8.

Idaho State (3-0) took a 10-point lead after the first quarter and put the game out of reach in the third when a 14-0 rally gave the home team their largest margin of the night at 53-30. ISU was disruptive defensively, forcing the 'Eaters into 23 turnovers on 15 steals.
 
BY THE NUMBERS: For the second time in three games, sophomore Lauryn Madsen made four threes for 12 points. Madsen was the only Anteater to reach double figures in scoring.
 
Sophomore Naomy Zonzon-Huyghe had a season-best nine points on 4-of-5 shooting. Freshman Ameerah Grant also scored the first points of her collegiate career, finishing with seven. Grant was 4-for-4 at the free throw line and dished out a team-best four assists.
 
Freshman Nohe'alani Stores pulled down a season-best nine rebounds, while senior Jada Wynn added eight boards.
 
UC Irvine outrebounded Idaho State, 32-30. The Anteaters also held a slight advantage in 3-point percentage, 41%-to-38%, and made 8-of-8 at the charity stripe. Both teams shot 39% from the field.
 
Tasia Jordan paced the Bengals with 12 points. Piper Carlson had 10 points and nine rebounds, while Kacey Spink finished with eight points, nine boards, five assists, and five steals.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: Idaho State (3-0) knocked down a 3-pointer to start the scoring. Madsen responded with a three, but the Bengals proceeded to score seven unanswered to pull ahead, 10-3, at the 5:04 mark. Zonzon-Huyghe made a couple driving layups to keep UC Irvine within five before ISU closed the first quarter on a 7-2 run for a 19-9 lead.
 
The Anteaters opened the second period on a 7-3 spurt, capped by a corner three from Madsen, to cut the deficit to 22-16 with 5:36 remaining. The two teams then traded buckets over the next two minutes. UCI made it a six-point game on a couple free throws from Grant, but Idaho State went on a 9-2 run down the stretch to build a 37-24 cushion at the break.
 
After the 'Eaters closed the gap to single digits early in the third frame, the Bengals pulled away as they reeled off 14-straight points to open a 53-30 advantage with 27 seconds left. Senior Hunter Hernandez then knocked down a couple free throws to end a six-minute scoring drought for UC Irvine.
 
ISU kept a double-digit lead the rest of the way. The Anteaters put together a 10-1 run over the final 1:37. Zonzon-Huyghe and Grant bookended the rally with the first 3-pointers of their UCI careers.
 
UP NEXT: UC Irvine returns home to host Northern Arizona in a 3:30 p.m. showdown on Saturday, Nov. 15.
 
NOTES
• Lauryn Madsen had her fifth career game with multiple 3-pointers made.
• Ameerah Grant's triple with eight seconds left in the fourth quarter was her first collegiate field goal.
• Sophomore Reese Noa had a career-high four points (2-2 FG) in five minutes played.
• Junior Haley Hernandez made her first field goal of the season, and dished out the first two assists of her career.
• Naomy Zonzon-Huyghe made her first career start.
• UCI's two leading scorers, Hunter Hernandez and Jada Wynn, were held to single digits for the first time this season.