CSUDH Falls in Buzzer Beater Against CSUSB, 54-53
Zipporah Chase tallies 17 points and 15 rebounds in defeat
February 14, 2004

Complete Box Score

Carson, CA -- Cal State Dominguez Hills sophomore Zipporah Chase (Los Angeles, CA/Carson HS) led the Toros with 17 points and 15 boards on the evening, but Cal State San Bernardino's Sequoia Williams' putback of a missed Coyote shot as the final buzzer sounded gave visiting CSUSB a thrilling 54-53 decision over CSUDH on Saturday night at the Torodome.

The Toros, dropping their fifth-consecutive game, fall to 10-11, 6-10 CCAA, while the Coyotes, snapping a five-game skid, improve to 8-13, 5-11 CCAA.

The Coyotes' Lacy Tanneberg found her stroke early in the game, connecting early and often to lead CSUSB to an 18-4 lead with nearly eight minutes elapsed in the first frame.

The advantage would increase to as much as 16 points on a pair of free throws by CSUSB's Nabosa Basse, but led by six first-half points each by Chase and Joi Cooper (Long Beach, CA/Chaparral HS), the Toros cut the lead to 29-19 entering the half.

The Toros began to chip away at the double-figure lead after intermission, narrowing it to 38-37 on a Chase jumper at the 10:02 mark. The Coyotes wouldn't relent, scoring the next seven points to bring their lead up to 45-37 on a three-ball by Jenny Jemmett.

Bolstered by a Tameka Blue (Watsonville, CA/Santa Cruz HS) layup, two Chase free throws, and an old-fashioned three-point play by Cooper, the Toros tied the contest at 45-45 with 6:21 left in regulation.

After a foul by CSUSB's Hannah Low, Blue sank a free throw to give the Toros their first lead since they opened the game scoring the first bucket. The Coyotes would battle back, tying the game three times in the final 4:21, setting up the final flurry with seconds left on the clock.

After Keesha Aldridge (Aiea, HI/Aiea HS) gave the Toros a 53-52 lead by sinking one free throw with :07 remaining, the Coyotes pushed the ball to the front court and missed an attempt with two seconds left, but Williams was at the right place at the right time, securing the offensive board and putting back the lay-in as time expired.

Cooper finished the game with 15 points for the Toros, draining 6-of-9 of her attempts from the field, while Crystal Maciel (Los Angeles, CA/Los Angeles CC) chipped in nine points, with all three baskets made from behind the arc.

CSUSB's Tanneberg led all scorers with 19 points, while Williams contributed 10 points, the last two settling the outcome.

The Toros are on the road consecutive weekends, at Cal State Stanislaus / Cal State Bakersfield and UC San Diego / Grand Canyon, before returning home the weekend of March 5-6 to host Sonoma State / San Francisco State in the final regular games of the season.