Women's basketball team reaches tournament

By Sherry Walker	On-line Forty-Niner
March 4, 1997

Unaware of the fact that they had already earned a spot in the Big West Conference Tournament, Cal State Long Beach women's basketball team members pounded on Cal Poly San Luis Obispo 80-63 Thursday night at The Pyramid.

CSULB Coach Dallas Boychuk decided not to tell her team about the clinch until after the game. She did not want them to ride in on the loss of another team. UC Irvine's loss to Cal State Fullerton secured the spot for the 49ers earlier that evening.

The 49er players had already decided they were going to take matters into their own hands by winning their game. They ran off with the lead with 1:27 left in the first half and never looked back.

The 49ers snatched 58 boards, outrebounding the Mustangs 58-31. Sophomore forward Tomika Cantley grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds and added 10 points.

"Our boards made a big difference. Cantley kept going at it, she did a great job," said Boychuk. "This was the game we had planned to win to get to the tournament."

CSULB returned to The Pyramid on Sunday, in their final home game, to face UC Santa Barbara, the no. 1 team in the Big West (14-1 and 21-5 overall).

It was a sentimental game for the 49ers, according to senior Toby Metoyer. Three of their starting seniors, Adara Newidouski, Metoyer, and Aimee Periolat, played their last game at The Pyramid as 49ers. They were honored in a pre-game ceremony.

The blazing hot UC Santa Barbara Gauchos have won their last 11 games. They have dominated the Western Division, losing only to UC Irvine, 67-65, in overtime.

The 49ers fell 20 points behind in the first half and were outscored 49-29. The 49ers returned in the second half to match the Gauchos point-for-point (41-41), but weren't able to overcome the first- half deficit.