FRESNO, Calif. – The University of California, Merced women's basketball team forced 18 turnovers and three Bobcats scored in double figures but it wasn't enough to knock off NCAA Division II opponent Fresno Pacific University on Tuesday night at the Special Events Center.

Niamey Guillory led the Bobcats (1-4) efforts with eleven points, six rebounds, and two steals.

Sarina Nagra matched Guillory with eleven points, marking her first career double figure scoring performance. The freshman knocked down two three-pointers on her way to her eleven points.

Emily Perez extended her double figure scoring streak to five straight games to start the season with ten points to go along with five rebounds and three steals.

 Freshmen Imani Johnson and Jazzy Beltran turned in their best outing through the early season. Johnson was good for eight points, six rebounds, and three assists, while Beltran notched a 2023 team-high six steals.

Other notables include six points on two triples from Leilani Blecha, five points and four rebounds from Paloma Ramirez, and three assists from Nicole Lukito.

The Bobcats fell behind by ten points early on and after cutting the deficit down to nine, found themselves trailing 25-13 at the end of the first quarter.

Fresno Pacific led by 20 points at 33-13 and it was a 41-21 Sunbirds lead at intermission.

The margin was between 17 and 22 points for the entire third quarter with the Bobcats highlight being the strong play from Johnson.

The Bobcats fell further behind in the fourth quarter but finished the game strong with a game-ending 17-3 run over the final four minutes. Nagra had the first five points during the run and then hit another three-pointer inside of 90 seconds. She assisted a Blecha triple on the final possession to round out the scoring.

UC Merced finished the night shooting 30% from the field, 33% from downtown, and 58% from the foul line.

Looking ahead, UC Merced begins California Pacific Conference play by hosting La Sierra University on Thursday, November 30 at 5:30pm inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium.