LONG BEACH, Calif.—UC San Diego women's basketball earned the program's first victory over Long Beach State with a 45-30 defensive battle on Thursday evening in Walter Pyramid. The Tritons (7-8, 3-1 Big West) moved to 1-6 in the all-time series with the Beach (6-9, 1-4 Big West).
 
Katie Springs led the Tritons with a career-best 12 points and finished just shy of a double-double for the second straight game, finishing with nine rebounds. Erin Condron and Gracie Gallegos finished with eight points apiece and Gallegos and Izzy Forsyth tallied seven rebounds each. Forsyth and Parker Montgomery led the team with two assists each and Forsyth also collected a team-best two blocks. Four Tritons collected two or more steals, led by Denali Pinto with five.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Both teams got off to a slow start in the opening quarter, with the Tritons shooting 19 percent (3-for-16) from the floor and the Beach just ahead of them at 30 percent (3-for-10). UC San Diego forced nine LBSU turnovers in the opening period. A 4-0 run by the Beach had the Tritons trailing, 8-5, with under three minutes to play. Gallegos hit a layup to pull UC San Diego within one but the Beach held on to a slight, 10-8, edge at the first quarter break.
 
The Tritons found a rhythm early in the second period, outscoring LBSU 8-2 to jump in front, 16-12. Long Beach State responded with a six-point run of its own to retake the lead, 18-16, midway through the period. A putback by Springs pulled the teams even at 18-all and the Tritons shut out the Beach in the final five minutes of the quarter to lead, 20-18, at halftime. 
 
The teams traded several turnovers to start the second half before the Beach knocked down their only three of the contest to take the lead, 21-20 with 7:07 on the clock. The teams traded baskets down the stretch before a 7-1 run gave UC San Diego a 33-26 advantage with 26 seconds to play. A late jumper by the Beach made it 33-28 at the final quarter break.
 
The Tritons locked down on defense in the final quarter, holding the Beach to just two points in the period—which came on a pair of free throws in the final 11 seconds. Springs collected 10 of UC San Diego's 12 points in the quarter, including finishing a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. 
 
QUOTABLE
"We won't be getting any style points for this win but really proud of our team," said UC San Diego head coach Heidi VanDerveer. "We had people step up and make big plays. I thought Katie Springs set the tone defensively. We were kind of sleepwalking through the first half but in the second half I thought we really took control of the game. We regained our poise offensively and were a lot sharper and smarter defensively with our game plan. 
 
I thought Katie, Erin Condron and Gracie Gallegos really stepped up. We got great poise from Parker Montgomery and Izzy Forsyth hit some timely shots for us. I think it was a good lesson for some of our young players that you have to come ready to play. As long as we can win and learn from a win, I'll take it." 
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Katie Springs recorded a career-best 12 points—her first double-figure scoring effort.
• The Tritons held the advantage in rebounds (40-35), points off turnovers (16-8), second chance points (10-6), bench points (16-12) and points in the paint (22-16). 
• The teams combined for 54 turnovers in the contest (29-LBSU; 25-UCSD).
• UC San Diego starters were Izzy Forsyth, Parker Montgomery, Denali Pinto, Katie Springs and Sumayah Sugapong.
• The Tritons are now 1-6 in the all-time series with Long Beach State.

UP NEXT 
The Tritons will return to LionTree Arena to host Cal Poly on Saturday at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and live statistics will be available via UCSDTritons.com.
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.