By In a hard-fought season opener on Saturday at the Walter Pyramid, the Long Beach State women’s basketball came from behind to secure a 67-65 victory over the William & Mary Tribe on Saturday afternoon.
After trailing early and struggling to break The Tribe’s constant defensive pressure, The Beach found their rhythm and fought back with resilience and composure in a thrilling fourth quarter.
“What a hard-fought game… They came out trapping and trying to force turnovers,” LBSU head coach Amy Wright said. “It was a great win for us in terms of showing our grit and towards the end, our composure.”
The Beach started slow and struggled offensively as they shot 26% from the field in the first quarter.
Sophomore forward Jada Crawshaw kept The Beach alive with key plays on both ends of the court. Crawshaw ended the night with eight points, eight rebounds and one block.
Sophomore forward Jada Crawshaw (left) goes up for a block on senior forward Anahi-Lee Cauley (right) during Long Beach State’s season opener against William and Mary. Crawshaw had eight points and eight rebounds as The Beach beat The Tribe 67-65 at the Walter Pyramid on Nov. 9. Photo credit: Samuel Chacko
“To me, the difference in the game is rebounding,” Wright said. “Even though it was 46-49 [in total rebounds] us, all that translates into paint touches.”
The Tribe continued to battle as their top scorer, senior guard Bella Nascimento, finished with 21 points and six rebounds. Nascimento was put under pressure all game by The Beach as they threw multiple defenders at her and switched frequently.
Wright explained how they knew the ball would always end up in Nascimento’s hands and they had to adjust their game plan by putting multiple defenders on her to force turnovers or miss shots.
Long Beach State head coach Amy Wright draws up a play for her team as The Beach battle against the Tribe. Long Beach State won 67-65 against William & Mary on Nov. 9. Photo credit: Samuel Chacko
The fourth quarter saw The Beach edge ahead for the first time. A pivotal steal by graduate student forward Rachel Loobie set up senior guard Savannah Tucker’s first layup of the game, which put The Beach ahead 59-56.
Loobie ended the night with three points, seven rebounds and one block.
Tucker struggled against The Tribe going 2-12 from the field but ended the game with eight points along with three rebounds and was 4-4 from the free throw line.
Despite late-game chaos, The Beach held their ground.
Tucker missed a layup with 18 seconds remaining, but freshman forward Mykelle Richards grabbed the rebound and scored.
Richards’ put-back gave The Beach a 67-65 lead and their defense held The Tribe in the last 10 seconds, ending a tense back-and-forth game.
“Sometimes we just have to loosen up…Coach is always serious…we just have to have fun,” Freshman guard JaQuoia Jones-Brown said.
The Beach have an opportunity to use their momentum from a tough win when they play the University of the Pacific in Stockton on Nov.15.
