MERCED, Calif. — The University of California, Merced women's basketball team was unable to slow down Cal State LA on Thursday night, losing 81-41inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium. Cal State LA extended its winning streak to 13 games.
The Bobcats (7-19, 4-15 CCAA) traded the lead three times in the opening quarter and appeared poised for a tight contest, but the Golden Eagles broke the game open in the second and controlled for the remainder of the night.
Paloma Ramirez led UC Merced offensively with 11 points while also adding five rebounds and one steal. Ramirez's steal streak is now up to seven straight games. With her rebounding output, she passed Deyliana Lewis for sixth in program history with 477 career rebounds. Ramirez also started the game, passing Kayla Polman for fifth in program history with 71 career starts.
Nicole Lukito finished with eight points, nine rebounds and one steal. Her steal streak was extended to five straight games. Already the Bobcats' all-time leading rebounder, Lukito sits just three boards shy of 1,000 for her career.
Elise LeBeau recorded eight points and had a season-high six assists. She also added four rebounds and two steals. LeBeau sits at 13 straight games with a steal.
Mariah Flores had eight points to go along with two assists, a rebound and a steal.
Sydney Corder Boyd had four points, three rebounds, and a steal.
The Bobcats started quick, jumping out to an early 4-0 lead and holding the Golden Eagles scoreless over the first two and a half minutes of the game. LeBeau facilitated the first two baskets, finding Ramirez for the first and Lukito for the second. Cal State LA tied the game on a basket through contact and took their first lead at the free-throw line, completing a three-point play to go up 5-4 at the 6:44 mark. The Bobcats answered moments later as a LeBeau steal led to a Jazzy Beltran fastbreak layup to regain the lead 6-5. Flores added two free throws to push the lead to three before a scoreless stretch of two minutes. The teams traded baskets at 3:44 with Boyd finishing a tough shot inside to give the Bobcats a 10-7 advantage. The Golden Eagles then strung together six straight points to flip the lead 13-10. LeBeau found Ramirez for UC Merced's lone three-pointer of the night to tie the game at 13 with 1:14 remaining, but Cal State LA would score in the closing moments to take a 15-13 lead into the second.
LeBeau found Lukito for a layup on the opening possession of the second quarter to tie the game at 15, but Cal State LA answered with back-to-back baskets to take a 19-15 lead. Lukito scored again at the 7:39 mark to make it a one possession game, but the Golden Eagles lead would grow from there. UC Merced managed just five more points in the quarter, with Ramirez sinking two free throws at 5:43 and adding a layup at 3:50 to make it 29-21. Defensively, the Bobcats only allowed three more field goals over the final three and a half minutes of the half, but those six unanswered points gave Cal State LA a 35-21 lead at intermission.
The Golden Eagles continued their run into the second half, scoring first after the break to take a 37-21 lead. The Bobcats rattled off four consecutive points with Flores knocking down a jumper and LeBeau converting a pair at the free throw line to cut the deficit to 37-25 at the 6:41 mark. Cal State LA answered with a three-pointer on the ensuing possession, sparking a 13-0 run over the next six minutes to push the margin to 50-25. In the final 30 seconds of the third quarter, LeBeau found Flores for a layup and then split a pair of free throws with one second remaining to make it 50-28 heading into the final period.
Cal State LA scored the first five points of the fourth quarter to push the lead to 55-28. Boyd knocked down her second basket of the night off an assist from flores at the 8:18 mark to make it 55-30. The teams then traded trips to the foul line, with Flores sinking two and LeBeau splitting a pair at 6:54 to bring the score to 60-33. The Golden Eagles answered with a three-pointer that started a 14-0 run over the next three minutes, stretching the lead to 74-33. Lukito halted the run with a basket at 2:49, assisted by Flores. Cal State LA followed up with back-to-back layups, and LeBeau added two more for UC Merced at the free-throw line, but the Golden Eagles connected on another three-pointer to take their largest lead of the night at 44 points, 81-37. The Bobcats scored the final four points in this contest as LeBeau made a layup and Ramirez recorded a steal and score at 1:16, but Cal State LA would win 81-41.
Overall, the Bobcats committed a season-low five fouls and limited the Golden Eagles to just three trips to the line.
Up next, the Bobcats will host Cal State Dominguez Hills for their final home game of the season. Tip-off is set for 1:00pm inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium on Saturday, February 21. UC Merced will honor Paloma Ramirez and Elise LeBeau for Senior Night.
