ARCATA, Calif. – After scoring the first five points of the contest, Humboldt State women's basketball was unable to keep pace with the visiting Tritons of UC San Diego, falling 77-62 Saturday evening in Lumberjack Arena on Senior Night.

HSU dropped to 14-11 overall and 13-7 CCAA conference with the loss, while the conference-leading Tritons improved to 23-3, 19-1.

Tyla Turner, following up her career-high 32-point night Thursday against Cal State San Marcos, had 29 on 11-of-26 shooting from the field and went 3-of-6 from 3-point range. Jovanah Arrington was the only other Lumberjack to score more than seven points, adding 13 and shooting 3-of-5 from downtown.  

After their success in the first few minutes, the Jacks were unable to find their offense for much of the first two periods. San Diego took a 17-13 lead at the end of one quarter and led 42-20 going into the half.

HSU came back strong in the third stanza, as a 16-4 run made it 48-36 at the 4:11 mark on a Turner jumper. San Diego stretched the lead back out to 59-38 with 7:45 left in the game, but the Jacks kept fighting. HSU closed to within 11 with a minute left, but it was a case of too little, too late for the Jacks.

"I think that San Diego played, from what I've seen in watching the throughout this season, one of its best halves of the year in the first half," said Lumberjack Head Coach Michelle Bento-Jackson. "We dug ourselves a big hole going into halftime. Credit to San Diego for playing a very good first half, but we just didn't make things tough enough for them. In saying that, I thought we fought hard to begin the second half but it was just too much to make up."

"We got into a bit of a flow offensively in the second half but too many times we let San Diego come right back and get a bucket."

The Tritons shot 51 percent from the field in the game and hit 8-of-15 from downtown. They outrebounded the Jacks 36-28 in the contest. HSU was bested despite hitting 10-of-19 from 3-point range.

Bento-Jackson praised the competitive spirit of her leading scorer, saying she turned to an assistant at one point during the game and remarked how hard Tyla Turner was playing.

"Personally, I think it's my defense that's transferring to my offense," said Turner. "If my offense is bad, I try to pick it up on defense. And I feel like my team really had my back. That's what really got me going. I had to do it for them, and that's why I had to turn it up."

"We have seven seniors, and this is just a special group to me," Bento-Jackson said of her senior class. "I've really enjoyed these girls both on and off the court, and I really wouldn't want to coach another group. To see the seniors honoring their careers here and obviously coming here myself over the last two seasons. Everything that these girls have done and bought into the things I've asked them to do, this is a special group."

HSU looks to secure a home game in the upcoming CCAA Tournament with favorable results in its last two games next Friday and Saturday at Sonoma State and San Francisco State, respectively, both with 5:30 p.m. tip times.