LA JOLLA, Calif. - The 14th-ranked UC San Diego women's basketball team won its eighth consecutive game to start the season on Tuesday, downing Western Washington 89-82 in the final game of the 2009 Triton Holiday Classic. The Tritons outscored the Vikings 41-23 in the opening half and shot 56% in the second to win their final nonconference matchup of 2009-10.

UCSD improves to 8-0, tying the school record for consecutive victories to start a season. Head coach Charity Elliott also led the Tritons to eight straight wins to open the 2007-08 campaign. UCSD went 2-0 during the Triton Holiday Classic, also defeating No. 20 Seattle Pacific in double overtime on Monday.

Western Washington, which had won four in a row entering Tuesday's contest, falls to 9-2 overall with the loss. The Vikings went 1-1 during the tournament, losing to the Tritons after defeating Grand Canyon 81-78 in the opener on Monday.

Sophomore guard Chelsea Carlisle bounced back from a poor shooting performance against SPU to score 26 points to lead the way for UCSD. She finished 8-of-14 from the field, including 3-of-6 from the three-point line, and hit 7-of-8 free throw attempts. Her 26 points was a season-high.

Senior guard Annette Ilg had another outstanding all-around performance, finishing with 15 points, six rebounds, nine assists, and six steals in 29 minutes. A night after scoring a career-high 24 against Seattle Pacific, Ilg set career marks in both assists and steals against WWU.

Junior center Charity Smith, a transfer from College of the Canyons, had her best game as a Triton, finishing with 10 points and nine rebounds in 17 minutes off the bench, while Tiffany Hunter scored in double figures for the third straight game, tallying 10 points to go with six boards.

Carlisle, Ilg, and Hunter were selected to the Triton Holiday Classic All-Tournament Team for their efforts.

The Tritons were in control early on, outscoring the Vikings 14-4 through the game's first six minutes. Western Washington pulled to within four at 19-15 with nine minutes left in the half, but UCSD closed the period on a 22-8 run to take a commanding 18-point cushion into the locker room at the break.

The Tritons led by as many as 25 points (54-29) in the second half and it looked as though UCSD would cruise to an easy victory, but the Vikings clawed their way back into it and hit five three-pointers in the final 2:56 to make things interesting.

WWU's Ashley Fenimore hit one of her four triples during the stretch to cut the Triton lead to just 80-73 with 2:05 left to play, but UCSD sank five free throws to push the advantage back to 12 with a minute remaining.

The Vikings closed to within seven once again with 35 seconds left, but it was too little too late, and the Tritons held on for the 89-82 triumph.

Jessica Summers finished with game-highs of 27 points and 12 rebounds for Western Washington, while Amanda Dunbar scored 19 points and dished out four assists.

UCSD shot 49% (31-63) for the game, including 56% in the second half, while WWU finished at a 45.5% (30-66) clip. The Vikings shot just under 64% in the final 20 minutes.

The defending CCAA champion Tritons will now resume conference play at Cal State L.A. and Cal State Dominguez Hills January 2-3. Tipoff for both games is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.

2009 Triton Holiday Classic All-Tournament Team
G – Chelsea Carlisle, UCSD
G – Annette Ilg, UCSD
F – Megan Hoisington, Seattle Pacific
F – Tiffany Hunter, UCSD
F – Jessica Summers, Western Washington