ARCATA, Calif. – Despite concluding their final home game, Humboldt State women's basketball knows there is still plenty to play for. The Lumberjacks (13-14, 10-10) finished the regular season with an even conference record, but despite Thursday's 62-59 loss to Cal State San Marcos (7-17, 5-14), know California Collegiate Athletic Association playoffs are still to come.
 
"Playoff time is survive and advance," said Head Coach Joddie Gleason. "We need to play a lot better, a lot harder, and have more people produce."
 
The game opened with each team struggling to get on the board. The game's first points did not come until the 7:20 mark on the first quarter. San Marcos built a lead as high as six points on five separate occasions in the period to lead 18-12 after one.
 
The Green and Gold closed out the final 2:36 of the first half with a 5-0 run to retake the lead going into the locker room, 28-25. HSU's bench outscored the Cougars 8-0 in the second quarter and 19-12 in the game.
 
The back-and-forth third quarter featured three of the game's five lead changes. Humboldt State claimed the lead back in the quarter's final seconds as Kiana Brown drained a 3-pointed from a cross-court Teylor McMiller pass to take the 44-43 advantage into the final period.
 
The Jacks scored the first eight points of the fourth to push their lead to a game-high nine points, 52-43, with 5:46 to play. Despite Brown hitting another long-range bucket with seven seconds remaining, San Marcos' 19-7 run to close the game was too much to overcome.
 
Humboldt State shot a season-low six free throw attempts, knocking down three.
 
Senior Amanda Kunst shot 12-for-17 from the field to lead the Jacks with 17 points. Brown finished with 11 on a perfect 3-for-3 outing from distance. A'Jaee Foster corralled a game-high nine rebounds.
 
Savannah Camp's 27 points and six rebounds led the Cougars.
 
"I think every game is going to be close," said Gleason. "Having the experience with close games definitely helps, but when it is playoff time, it is all about toughness and competitive fire."
 
The Jacks will have to wait until the conclusion of Saturday night's game to know their destination for the first round of the CCAA Tournament. The three top teams in the standings currently each only have two losses apiece.