Saturday, December 9
San Luis Obispo, Calif.
2 P.M.
84
vs
59
Fresno State
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
PG
/ Women's Basketball
Photo by: Owen Main | Cal Poly Athletics
Mustangs Impress in Home Opener Knocking Off Fresno State 84-59
12/9/2023 7:32:00 PM | Women's Basketball
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — It couldn't have been a better way for the first home game of the season to go for head coach Shanele Stires and the Cal Poly women's basketball team as the Mustangs, behind the program's best offensive output in nearly three years, beat Fresno State 84-59 Saturday afternoon in Mott Athletics Center.
It was a balanced, spread offensive attack as five players scored in double figures. Senior forward Natalia Ackerman led the way with a career-high 19 points and 10 rebounds for her second double-double of the season. She was a perfect 9-9 from the field and did it coming off the bench in just 20 minutes of action. Redshirt freshman forward Sierra Lichtie was 5-7 from the field as she poured in a career-high 17 points in addition to seven rebounds and four assists.
Junior guard Annika Shah continued her strong start to the season, notching 16 points on 50-percent shooting. Fellow junior guard Sydney Richards put up 12 points and graduate guard Ania McNicholas added 10 points and a career-high seven assists for Cal Poly, who shot a season-high 59-percent and committed a season-low of 10 turnovers while dishing out 21 assists.
The Mustangs (3-5) dug themselves out of an early hole, getting down 17-5 to begin the game. Cal Poly bounced back and was able to cut the deficit to six after the first quarter. The Mustangs continued to chip away at the Bulldogs' (6-5) lead into the second quarter as the Mustangs took their first lead at 36-35 with 2:10 left in the first half. Tied at 36, the Mustangs closed the half on a 7-0 run to take a seven-point lead into halftime.
Up by six with 5:30 left in the third, the Mustangs turned on the jets to pull away from Fresno State. Cal Poly used an 11-2 run over the next four minutes to go up by 15, 60-45. The Mustangs continued to pour it on in the fourth as the Cal Poly defense forced the Bulldogs to miss their first six shots from the field as the Mustangs extended the lead to as much as 30.
Up next for the Mustangs is another home game next Saturday, Dec. 16 against Montana at 6 p.m. inside Mott Athletics Center.
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