ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Sophomore Lina Falk and senior Jaydia Martin each finished in double figures, but a lengthy run by Abilene Christian that covered parts of the second and third quarters allowed the Wildcats to break open a three-point game and defeat Sacramento State, 80-49, in the Hornets' Lobo Invitational finale on Friday afternoon in Albuquerque, N.M.
Sacramento State closes out the non-conference portion of its schedule with a 7-6 overall record, taking a two-week break until it rings in the New Year with its Big Sky Conference opener at Portland State on Jan. 4.
Abilene Christian won its seventh straight game to improve to 9-4 overall on the season and closes out the tournament against host New Mexico on Saturday.
Falk came off the bench to finish 5-of-11 from the field — four of those from beyond the arc — en route to a 14-point day, adding four rebounds and a pair of steals. It was her team-high ninth double-digit scoring performance of the year, but her first since finishing with 13 points at Omaha on Dec. 7.
Martin ended the day with 13 points, three rebounds and a blocked shot, extending her double-digit scoring streak to seven consecutive games after she finished with 17 points against New Mexico on Thursday night. She is averaging 17.6 ppg during her current streak.
Junior guard Benthe Versteeg finished with a season-high nine assists to go with five points, four rebounds, and two steals, while sharing team-high honors with Falk in the rebounding category. Defensively, senior Katie Peneueta finished with a game-high six blocked shots — just one off her career high of seven set against Idaho on Jan. 5, 2023, as a sophomore — which rank tied for eighth on the school's single-game list.
Sacramento State came out of the gates quickly and were red-hot from distance as its first five baskets of the day all came from beyond the arc, helping the Hornets build an eight-point, 17-9, lead with 2:37 remaining in the opening quarter. However, an 11-0 run gave Abilene Christian a 20-17 lead after one.
The teams went back-and-forth to start the second as a lay-up by Falk kept the deficit at three, 26-23, with 3:47 left in the half. That's when the Wildcats took over, scoring the final nine points of the quarter to lead by 12 at the break and then holding Sacramento State scoreless for the first five-plus minutes of the third quarter to take command of the contest.
Versteeg's nine assists marked the seventh time that she has had five or more in a game this season and surpassed her previous season high of seven set against UC San Diego on Nov. 7 and tied on Nov. 17 against Long Beach State. It is currently the third-highest total by a Big Sky player this season.
Meanwhile, the six blocked shots by Peneueta are currently the most by a player in the league, surpassing three other players who had four in a game — including her teammate Brooklyn Taylor, who swatted four against Wagner on Dec. 1. With her seven swats this season, Peneueta now has 70 for her Sacramento State career, moving her up one spot into eighth place on the school's all-time list past Sephora Scoubes (67 from 1999-01).
Peneueta now needs just one more block to tie former teammate Isnelle Natabou (71 from 2021-23) for seventh place and two more to match Natasha Torgerson (72 in 2009-13) for sixth. Should she collect 30 more blocks this season, Peneueta would become only the sixth Hornet to reach the century mark and the first since Kennedy Nicholas collected 173 from 2016-20.
