Box Score | LA JOLLA, Calif. - The Cal Poly Pomona women's basketball team came close to completing a regular season sweep of UC San Diego on the road Saturday but ultimately fell in overtime, 66-64.
It marks the third-straight loss for the Broncos, who fall to 11-9 overall and 9-7 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). CPP is in a three-way tie for fourth place in the conference standings with Cal State L.A. and Cal State East Bay. The Pioneers secured a home win over the Golden Eagles Saturday.
The Broncos got two heroic performances from a pair of seniors Saturday in La Jolla.
Ashley Boggs and
Jennifer Bryant played 44 minutes apiece in the overtime contest and both scored in double figures. Boggs collected a game-high 21 while Bryant added 16 points with a 4-for-6 effort from beyond the arc.
Freshman
Cydnie Jones, earning her second-straight start for CPP, recorded her first career double-double performance with 11 points and 11 rebounds. The Riverside native also dished out a team-high four assists. Meanwhile, UCSD's Erin Dautremont came through with clutch plays in the final minute of overtime to finish as the star Saturday for the host squad.
The Tritons jumped out to an early lead in Saturday's game with Emily Osga knocking down a three-pointer to push the host squad in front 10-4. CPP steadily chipped away at the margin though and Bryant quickly found her rhythm from beyond the arc, draining her first three three-point attempts to help the Broncos take over the lead.
Bryant's first triple of the contest gave CPP a 14-12 edge at the 11:03 mark and the visitors maintained an advantage through the remainder of the opening half.
The Broncos took a 29-26 lead into the break after outrebounding UCSD 18-15 through the first 20 minutes.
Lisha Elsenbach provided key contributions for CPP, grabbing five first-half rebounds with four of those coming on the offensive end. The sophomore from Burbank ended up with a career-high eight rebounds on the night.
The second-half action at RIMAC Arena proved to be even more closely contested and the Tritons seized the lead just a few minutes into the final period. The stellar shooting of Boggs helped the Broncos trade baskets with UCSD and keep within striking distance into the final stretch of play.
Showing the team's resiliency, CPP bounced back to tie the score on a couple different occasions. Trailing 53-51 with under three minutes to play, Boggs sent a pass into the paint for
Mian Dingle, who converted with a quick jumper to tie the score.
The Tritons went back ahead 55-53 but Jones picked up a steal and dropped in a fastbreak layup to even the score going into the final 60 seconds of action. Both defenses held tough and the game moved to extra time with the score at 55-55.
The seesaw nature of the contest continued in overtime and a Jones layup put CPP ahead 64-63 with 37 seconds to play. The Tritons got a layup from Dautremont to jump back in front and they added a free throw to get a two-point spread. On the final possession, a Boggs shot attempt was blocked by Dautremont as UCSD escaped with the home win.
The Broncos will return to action Thursday with a 5:30 p.m. home game against Cal State East Bay.
