LOS ANGELES – The Central Washington University Women's Basketball Team bounced back for a huge victory in the City of Angels over the Cal State Los Angeles Golden Eagles Monday afternoon.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
 

• Final: Central Washington (74), Cal State Los Angeles (59)
• Records: CWU (8-1, 1-0 GNAC), LA (4-3, 1-1 CCAA)
• Location: University Gym (Los Angeles)

 
QUOTING CWU HEAD WOMEN'S BASKETBALL COACH RANDI RICHARDSON:
 
"I'm happy with our response today. I felt we played a very complete game against a very good team in CSLA. We shared the ball offensively and had more balance which was great and defensively we defended the three which we knew was going to be critical as well as rebounding well. Now it's onto the recovery battle for another big one tomorrow!"
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 

• It was a back-and-forth battle to begin the game as back-to-back threes from Sierra Eddie gave the 'Cats the 7-6 lead with 7:49 left in the first.
• A layup from Asher Cai followed by a three from Fiona Snashall made it a 12-8 game in favor of CWU, but an 11-2 run to end the quarter by LA saw the Golden Eagles jump out to the 19-14 lead after the first 10 minutes.
• A pair of free-throws by Cai to begin the second was answered with a layup by Nevaeh Asiasi, however, a quick eight-point streak by CWU saw the crimson and black take the lead back at 24-21 with 6:17 left in the second.
• A 7-2 run afterwords saw the 'Cats take the 31-23 lead heading into the media timeout.
• Both teams exchanged a pair of buckets as the 'Cats took the 35-27 lead heading into the halftime break.
• A rinse and repeat to begin the third quarter as both teams drilled a pair of baskets, however, the crimson and black rattled off back-to-back threes to see their lead increase to 14, 45-31 with 7:21 left in the third.
• The 'Cats managed to respond every time the Golden Eagles earned a basket over the next few minutes, but back-to-back baskets by LA paired with two free-throws saw the CWU lead back down to single digits, 49-42 with 4:02 left in the third.
• A layup by Kayla Thonton at the buzzer saw the 'Cats take the 58-46 lead heading into the final 10 minutes.
• Once again, the two squads exchanged a pair of baskets to begin the fourth proving to be a theme as the 'Cats punched back every time LA scored to secure the 74-59 victory on the road.

 
STATS FROM THE GAME:
 

• Cai and Snashall both had double-doubles with Cai finishing with 19 points, 10 rebounds, seven assists, a block, and two steals and Snashall adding 16 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, and a steal.
• Capri Sims finished with 17 points, four rebounds, and four assists.
• Eddie tallied nine points, two rebounds, and three assists off the bench while Thornton added eight points, three rebounds, five assists, and four steals.
• Jordy DeMott and Aliyah Finch each had two points with DeMott grabbing six rebounds and a steal and Finch adding two rebounds.
• Rylee Leishman had a point and an assist while Emily Shaw grabbed a rebound and dished out an assist.
• The 'Cats finished the game shooting 43.3 percent from the floor, 31.3 percent from three, and 75 percent at the free-throw line.
• The Golden Eagles were led by Asiasi and Sofia Fidelus who each had 15 points with Amaya Fuentes not far behind with 11 points.
• LA shot 40 percent from the floor, 15.4 percent from three, and 92.9 percent at the free-throw line.
• The 'Cats dominated the boards by a 44-27 margin.

 
SERIES HISTORY:
 

• CWU leads the all-time series 7-2.
• The 'Cats are 3-1 in LA.
• The crimson and black have broke a two-game skid to the Golden Eagles.

 
UP NEXT:
 

• CWU will wrap up their Southern California trip with a trek down south to Cal State San Marcos tomorrow.
• The Wildcats and Cougars clash at noon on Tuesday, December 16 from inside The Sports Center in San Marcos, California.