LOS ANGELES - Sophomore forward
Erin Dautremont scored a career-high 27 points to lift the fifth-ranked UC San Diego women's basketball team to a resounding 92-69 victory over Cal State L.A. in California Collegiate Athletic Association play on Saturday night at the Eagles Nest.
UCSD's offense was firing on all cylinders on Saturday, racking up a season-high 92 points on 52% shooting as the Tritons easily turned back the Golden Eagles on their home floor. UCSD improves to 8-0 overall and 2-0 in the CCAA with the win, while Cal State L.A. drops to 3-3 and 1-1 in conference play.
Dautremont was the catalyst, shooting a remarkable 12-of-14 from the field to lead four players in double figures for the Tritons. She also sank all three of her free throws, shattering her previous career mark of 12 points that came in UCSD's win over Hawaii Pacific on November 18.
The West Hills native, who also grabbed eight rebounds on the night, scored 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting to stake the Tritons to a big lead in the first half and then added 15 more in the second stanza as UCSD put the game away.
"Tonight was definitely a breakout performance for Erin," head coach Charity Elliott said. "We got her the ball in some good spots and she did an excellent job of finishing. Cal State L.A. played hard, but they just didn't have an answer for her tonight."
Lauren Freidenberg finished with 18 points and a game-high nine rebounds for the Tritons, while Chelsea Carlisle tallied 17 points, six rebounds, six assists and five steals. Daisy Feder added 12 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Freidenberg converted 8-of-10 shots from the field, while Carlisle shot 7-for-12 and Feder was 2-of-5. The Tritons were 36-for-69 as a team, shooting better than 52% for the second consecutive game.
Lacy Ramon scored 17 points on 5-of-5 shooting for the Golden Eagles, while Maryum Jenkins finished with 12 points and six boards and Tessondra Williams scored 11. CSULA finished at 41% from the field, converting 23-of-56 shots.
As they have done in virtually every game so far this season, the Tritons jumped out to an early lead and never looked back on Saturday, scoring 11 straight points to take a 19-9 edge with 12:42 remaining in the first half. A triple by Carlisle and a layup from Erin Grady gave UCSD a 26-13 lead two minutes later.
The Golden Eagles scored the next six points to cut the lead to 26-19, but UCSD outscored CSULA 25-9 over the final eight minutes of the period to take a commanding 51-28 lead into the locker room at halftime.
UCSD shot 56% in the first half, dropping 22-of-39 attempts from the field.
Cal State L.A. pulled within 13 at 67-54 with 12:37 left to play in the second half, but UCSD answered with another massive run, scoring 17 of the next 19 points to increase the lead to 28 at 84-56 with a little more than nine minutes left to play. The Tritons led by as many as 31 points, taking a 90-59 lead with 5:27 remaining.
UCSD held a commanding 48-28 rebounding advantage in the game and outscored Cal State L.A. 38-16 in the paint.
UCSD's previous high mark for the year was 85 points, which came in last weekend's victory over Cal State San Marcos at the Thanksgiving Classic. The Tritons are averaging 84.0 points over their last four games after putting up 74.2 in their first four.
UCSD will take the next eight days off for final exams and then return to the court on Monday, December 12 when Cal State San Bernardino pays a visit to La Jolla. Tip-off for the Tritons-Coyotes tilt is slated for 7:00 p.m. at RIMAC Arena.
