ARCATA, Calif. – In a full Lumberjack Arena, the Humboldt State women's basketball team crunched rival Chico State, 85-65, and clinched the first California Collegiate Athletic Association playoff bid.
 
Trailing 18-16 nine minutes into the game, the Lumberjacks went on a 17-2 run over the next six minutes to lead 33-21. The visiting Wildcats clawed back to within 11 points in the second half, 74-63. HSU stepped on the gas to a tune of an 8-0 run and finished with the 20-point victory.
 
The HSU win completed its first season sweep of Chico State and ran its win streak in the series to its longest of three games. The Jacks (20-3) improved to 11-0 at home and continued their tie with Cal State Dominguez Hills at 16-2 atop the CCAA standings.
 
"It was a collected effort at both ends of the court. We slowed down their attack in the first half, but they (Chico State) caught fire in the second half. Our veteran leadership and their calmness helped us extend the lead at the end," said HSU Head Coach Joddie Gleason.
 
The HSU victory also clinches the program's first CCAA Tournament spot in four years. The Jacks were last in the conference postseason tournament in the 2011-12 campaign where they finished 19-8.
 
"It is a great feeling to clinch and to get in the tournament. We are not going to settle. We check out all the scores and will get ourselves ready for the next opponent next Friday," said Gleason.
 
Gleason's senior point guard Kersey Wilcox ran the show and had her best night of the season. The Prineville, Ore., native pumped in a season-high 20 points on 7-for-13 shooting with a pair of 3-pointers and connected on all four foul shots. The guard also handed out eight assists, grabbed four rebounds and stole on pass.
 
"These are the games she's made for. She is clutch, calm, distributes the ball and finds ways to score herself," said Gleason.
 
"They are a fun team to play. They're always aggressive and it is fun to be your rival," said Wilcox. "I hit my first few jumpers and so I kept shooting them. It was a good night on the scoring end for me."
 
On the inside, Wilcox's four-year teammate Megan Shields had her way. The 6-1 center made 6-of-10 shots, one trey and 3-of-4 foul shots for 16 points. The senior also grabbed eight boards, swatted five blocked shots and had three assists.
 
"We wanted to prove that we were the better team tonight," said Shields. "Any person on our team can come out and have a 20-point night. We are able to see who is on early on and that makes us dangerous."
 
Jae Shin and Dani Gaumer produced identical 3-for-5 nights, all 3-pointers, for nine points apiece. A'Jaee Foster completed the Jacks' starting five with eight points, five rebounds and two assists, all in the second half.
 
Amanda Kunst added 11 points, two rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots to lead the HSU bench players. Nikki Powell chipped in six points, four rebounds and a blocked shot.
 
Chico State was led by Annie Ward's 16 points and Brooke Bowen's 15 points.
 
HSU outrebounded Chico State, 34-23, on the night. The Jacks also connected on a season-high 60.4 percent of their shots (32-of-53) and made 12-of-21 3-point attempts.
 
The Jacks have their final CCAA road trip of the season starting next Friday at Cal State Monterey Bay. The tip is at 5:30 p.m.