The Long Beach State women’s basketball team headed into the Matadome considered massive underdogs as it clashed with Big West conference-leading Cal State Northridge, but the ‘Niners didn’t receive that memo.
LBSU (10-14, 5-6 Big West Conference) who is a dismal 1-12 away from the comforts of the Walter Pyramid stunned the host Matadors (14-10, 8-3) with a 75-72 double-overtime victory Saturday night.
Down by three late in regulation, freshman guard and Northridge native Chantel Dooley swiftly cut through the paint and converted a layup to bring the 49ers to within one point with 10 seconds to go.
LBSU then intentionally fouled freshman guard Ashlee Guay, who converted one of two from the free throw line.
On the ensuing possession, Dooley’s homecoming party continued as she scored in the paint once more to tie the game with 1.4 seconds remaining.
A forty-foot heave by Matador star Jasmine Erving at the buzzer was unsuccessful and The Beach carried the momentum into overtime.
“It’s pretty great,” Dooley said of her return to Northridge after watching last year’s contest due to her redshirt status. “All of my friends and family were here. I had to show them something, it put a little fire under me.”
Dooley added: “It took heart and will. It took getting to the basket and getting a layup.”
LBSU jumped out to a quick five-point lead in the first overtime, but Northridge scored the last five of the extra frame to force a second overtime period.
To start the second overtime, Dooley was at it again as she scored two quick buckets for the Beach. She finished the contest with 10 points, three rebounds, two assists and a steal. From there, senior forward Tipesa Moorer took over.
Moorer sunk her second 3-pointer of the contest and then converted four consecutive free throws to anchor the ‘Niners and seal the win.
The lone senior paced the ‘Niners throughout the game, finishing 19 points on 6 of 17 shooting to go along with five rebounds.
Moorer said the key to holding on for the victory was “our attitude in general. One stop and one bucket at a time, I think that attitude helped.”
After the game, Moorer had nothing but praise for the play of Dooley.
“She is such a great athlete. When she plays the way she did today she is unstoppable, I don’t think they were ready for her.”
Sophomore guard Hallie Meneses also came up big for LBSU, scoring 14 points to go with four steals, three assists, and two boards. While freshman Alex Sanchez finished with 11 points on 3 of 8 from the field.
Freshman forward Devin Hudson added 8 points and a game-high 11 rebounds for Long Beach.
Even after a stagnant first half on the offensive end, Erving led the Matador attack. The senior forward had a game-high 20 points to go with 10 boards.
LBSU head coach Jody Wynn said win or lose, she was proud of the effort the team put-forth.
“You cannot fault the kids when they play with that kind of effort. It is beautiful to see our ladies get rewarded.”
Wynn added: “We had some confidence after a great week of practice and film sessions. We realized Northridge is a very good team. We realized what they have done as of late, but our kids were just focused and they made the big plays.”
Northridge had set the tempo early in the contest, jumping out to a 13-6 lead. The Beach responded with strong three-point shooting en route to a 17-0 run.
In the first half, the ‘Niners shot 6 of 10 from long range. Meneses led the way, knocking down all three of her attempts. Freshman guard Lauren Spargo was 2 for 2 and Moorer added one on two attempts for The Beach.
The 23-13 lead did not last long however, as the Matadors outscored LBSU 18-9 to end the half, leaving the ‘Niners with the slimmest of leads at 32-31.
LBSU returns to action Thursday as it will host Big West rival U.C. Davis (15-8, 7-4) at 7 p.m.
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