By When Long Beach State and Fullerton meet, whatever happened up to this point is thrown out of the window and the rivalry takes precedence over everything. This game was no different as both teams fought until the final buzzer.
LBSU women’s basketball defeated conference rival Cal State Fullerton 67-56 during ASI night on Thursday at the Walter Pyramid thanks to crucial Long Beach State blocks and double-digit scorers.
Four Beach players scored in double figures in Thursday night’s win over the Titans with senior guard Savannah Tucker leading the way with 16 points.
Senior guard Savannah Tucker (right) tries to go for a chase-down block against junior guard Demonnie Lagway (left) on ASI night at the Walter Pyramid. Tucker’s team-leading 16 points along with four rebounds and two assists helped propel The Beach 67-56 against The Titans on Dec. 5. Photo credit: Samuel Chacko
The Titans came out of the gates strong with a 7-2 run to open up the first quarter, forcing The Beach to play catch-up for the rest of the frame. The Beach did just that and found themselves down three points at 15-12 at the end of the first quarter.
Long Beach State’s second-quarter success was symbolized by senior guard Lovely Sonnier’s defensive rebound that she took 94 ft. to the other basket for a layup. This play sparked a 6-2 run that put The Beach up 26-25 at the half.
“We’re definitely an emotional team,” LBSU head coach Amy Wright said. “If we have something positive happen then really feed into that.”
Long Beach State found its rhythm in the third quarter shooting 43.8% from the field while making five of their seven free throws.
The Beach’s speed began to wear down the Titans and their up-tempo play style on both sides of the ball forced Fullerton into mistakes and limited their defensive efficiency.
This energy led to Long Beach State leading Fullerton 46-37 at the end of the third quarter.
Graduate forward Rachel Loobie was one of those LBSU players flying around the court as she filled up The Beach’s side of the box score, putting up 11 points while grabbing eight rebounds and totaled five of The Beach’s nine blocks.
Forward graduate student Rachel Loobie (yellow) attempted to block the ball with a swipe of her hand on Dec. 5 at ASI night. Loobie had 11 points and eight rebounds as Long Beach State beat Fullerton 67-56 at the Walter Pyramid. Photo credit: Samuel Chacko
“A lot of them [blocks] were against shorter guards,” Loobie said. “My first thoughts are that if I can’t get that stop at the top, I’m definitely getting that stop at the bottom.”
The Beach shot an efficient 47% from the field in the fourth quarter, propelling them to a 64-47 lead with 2:52 to go in the game.
Fullerton made two three-pointers at end of the fourth, but it was too little too late as The Beach held on by a final score of 67-56 to defeat the Titans in the first conference game of the season.
“We go in with a chip on our shoulder and have a chance to prove who we are as Long Beach State,” Loobie said.
Next up for Long Beach State is a date with Hawai’i on Saturday, Dec. 7 in Manoa, Hawai’i.
“We’re not going to change who we are, we might have some nuances to throw in there defensively. But offensively, we’re starting to get really good and really productive as what we do so we want to continue that,” Wright said.
