ARCATA — Humboldt State women's basketball head coach Joddie Gleason was slightly concerned with how her team would come out of the holiday break, but her Jacks eased any concern with a 92-77 victory over Simpson Saturday night.

"We had a long layover—longest we've ever actually had with 10 days—and we were playing really well before the break so it's always our fear that we might come out a little flat," said Gleason. "We had three great practices in the last two days and our veterans don't let us take a day off. It wears off on the other teammates."

Not only did the Jacks score their most points this season, two Lumberjacks scored career-high points. Lisa Petty led HSU with a game- and career-high 29 points, her eighth time leading the Jacks offensive effort this season.

"Lisa is consistent night in and night out," said Gleason. "She gets a lot of attention off the opponent's defense, they know our offense goes through her, yet she still delivers."

Following Petty with a career achievement of her own was Elle Anderson who finished the night with 18 points off 9-for-11 shooting.

"We've been waiting for Elle to have this kind of breakout game," said Gleason. "She always does a good job of posting up and demanding the ball from a great position and tonight she had that mindset to go and score. I thought she had a great game and confidence builder for her going into league."

Caitie Richards and Tiana Maxwell also finished the night with double digit points, putting down 14 and 11 points, respectively. Kelly Kime picked up 11 rebounds for the Jacks, while assisting nine baskets on the night. 

Three Red Hawks ended the night with double figures, led by the duo of Nicole Jones and Ariassa Wilson. Jones, who scored 27 points, and Wilson, who finished 25 points, accounted for a third of the Simpson squad's points. Wilson also picked up 11 rebounds to complete the double-double.

While Simpson scored the first points of the game, the Red Hawks couldn't hold onto the lead as the Jacks quickly took control of the game. 

"It was a really fun game for us," said Anderson. "I felt our starting five was really clicking tonight and it felt really good."

Tied at 12-12, Richards and Petty teamed up on a 10-point run to put HSU in front 22-12 with just over 10 minutes left in the first half.

With a 30-20 lead over the Red Hawks, Humboldt State went on a 17-2 run to head into halftime with a 47-22 edge over Simpson.

"I thought that our first group really executed and set the tone," said Gleason. "They got us up close to 30 points ahead on numerous occasions, which is hard to do when the other team kept making runs at us. I thought they did a good job of running our stuff well."

Looking to carry the momentum it gained in the first half, Humboldt State took its largest lead of the game two and a half minutes into the second half with a 54-22 cushion on the Red Hawks.

Despite the huge deficit, Simpson wasn't ready to go down without a fight and came back into the match down the stretch. With five minutes left in the contest, Jones started a seven-point run to put the score within nine points.

"I think at that time, we were a little hesitant, which resulted in turnovers and those turnovers are points," said Gleason. "Simpson is really quick and they get up and down the court very well, especially Wilson and Jones. We didn't do a good job of taking care of the ball and then of stopping them in transition."

Humboldt State's starters, Petty, Richards, Kime, Anderson and Maxwell, entered the court for the Jacks determined to finish the game out and not let the Red Hawks get any more out of the game.

At the one minute mark, Richards sunk a shot from distance beyond the arc off an assist from Kime, sealing the victory for the Jacks. Two free throw shots from Petty in the final seconds of the game gave HSU its last two points of the 92-77 victory over Simpson—as well as the most points the Jacks have scored this season.

The Jacks will look to carry the momentum into the new year as they face two tough California Collegiate Athletic Association teams. HSU first hosts Cal State San Bernardino on Jan. 3, before taking on UC San Diego Jan. 5, both games at 5:30 p.m. in Lumberjack Arena.