SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif.—UC San Diego women's basketball fell to Cal Poly, 61-56, on Thursday evening in Mott Athletics Center. The Tritons (6-10, 2-2 Big West) snapped a three-game winning streak against the Mustangs (7-8, 2-3 Big West) to move to 5-5 in the all-time series.
 
Sumayah Sugapong led the Tritons with 23 points, while Erin Condron and Sabrina Ma added 11 points apiece. Condron recorded her first career double-double with a career-high 10 rebounds—including four offensive boards—and Parker Montgomery finished with six. Ma and Sugapong both collected a team-best three assists. Montgomery tallied four steals, while Gracie Gallegos and Sugapong collected three each. Four different Tritons recorded a block in the contest.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The teams traded baskets to begin the contest, battling to a one-point UC San Diego advantage at the first media timeout, 8-7. The Tritons were held off the board for the final four minutes of the opening period and Cal Poly took a 12-8 lead into the first quarter break.
 
Cal Poly extended its lead to eight points to open the second quarter before the Tritons put together a 9-0 scoring run to retake the lead, 17-16. Back-to-back layups by Sugapong and Condron gave UC San Diego its largest advantage of the first half, 21-17, with under four minutes to play. The Mustangs tied the game once again, 21-21, with 2:37 to play and the teams kept things close down the stretch. Cal Poly took a 26-25 lead into the halftime intermission.
 
UC San Diego forced 15 Cal Poly turnovers in the first half, compared to just six for the Tritons.
 
In the second half, the teams picked up right where they left off, trading the lead to a 35-35 tie midway through the quarter. The Mustangs hit a layup and a three to build the largest lead of the period, 40-35. Sugapong took over down the stretch, scoring six consecutive points in the final minute to put the Tritons back in front 41-40 at the final quarter break.
 
The teams traded a one-point lead to open the fourth period before a 5-0 run gave Cal Poly the lead for good with 7:20 on the clock. The Mustangs used a seven-point run to extend their advantage, 57-48, with under five minutes to play. The Tritons responded with an 8-2 run of their own to make it a one-possession game, 59-56, with 39.6 seconds remaining. UC San Diego secured a turnover with a Sugapong steal with 14 seconds remaining, but a final three-point shot missed the mark. The Mustangs made a pair of free throws to close out the contest, 61-56.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Sumayah Sugapong finished two points shy of her career high and one point shy of her season high, recording her third 20-point performance of the season.
• Erin Condron recorded her first career double-double with a career-high 10 rebounds.
• UC San Diego held the advantage in points off of turnovers (20-8), bench points (13-2), fast break points (13-7), steals (12-4) and offensive rebounds (14-9). Cal Poly had the edge in rebounds (40-35) and second chance points (13-8). Points in the paint were even (26-26).
• The Tritons are now 5-5 in the all-time series with Cal Poly.
• UC San Diego starters were Sumayah Sugapong, Sabrina Ma, Gracie Gallegos, Kayanna Spriggs and Parker Montgomery.

UP NEXT
UC San Diego will wrap up the road trip at UC Irvine 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.