SACRAMENTO — Junior Seilala Lautaimi finished with a career-high 12 points in 14 minutes while adding seven rebounds to lead two other Sacramento State teammates in double figures but a lengthy run by visiting UC Davis spanning the first and second periods on Tuesday night helped lift the Aggies to a 79-57 victory at The Nest.
Lautaimi finished 3-of-6 from the floor and fought her way to the free throw line four times, finishing 6-of-8 from the stripe en route to her career-high total. The seven rebounds were also a career best for the San Mateo, Calif., native, one-upping her six boards against Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 12.
Senior Solape Amusan came off the bench to add a season-high 11 points on 4-of-7 from the floor — including a 3-for-3 performance from beyond the arc — while sophomore Benthe Versteeg added a season high of her own with 11 points to go with five rebounds and four assists.
Freshman Paula Haw added a career-high nine rebounds in 14 minutes off the bench, while freshman Summah Hanson finished with nine points, four rebounds, three assists, and three steals, snapping her run of three-straight double-doubles.
The Hornets (0-5) and Aggies (2-3) fought tooth-and-nail over the first eight minutes of the contest, with UC Davis jumping out to a five-point lead only to have Sacramento State rally back, using a 7-2 run to tie it at nine-all, and answering a bucket by the Aggies with an inside score from Ayanna Jackson to make it 11-11 with 2:38 to go.
Then UC Davis exploded, scoring the final nine points of the quarter and extending the run to 26 consecutive points into the second period before a free throw from Lautaimi stopped the bleeding, but the Aggies never looked back.
Sacramento State, however, didn't throw in the towel, outscoring UC Davis the rest of the way by a 46-42 count. The Hornets closed the first half with 13 of the final 20 points — including a 7-0 burst and a 10-2 closing kick, trailed in the third quarter scoring by only two, and then played the Aggies even in the fourth with 16 points apiece.
Megan Norris finished with 21 points on 9-of-11 from the field for the Aggies, adding eight rebounds, while Tova Sabel (18) and Evanne Turner (16) were also in double figures.
The Hornets break for the Thanksgiving holiday before returning to the court on Wednesday (Nov. 29) at 6:30 p.m., hosting Santa Clara at The Nest.
