From Reports By Long Beach State Sports Information Department

The Long Beach State women’s basketball team started the season on Sunday afternoon without Karina Figueroa.  It showed in the second half as the 49ers were unable to pull off a comeback, falling to San Diego State, 67-59, in their season-opener at the ‘Myd.

LBSU was led by junior Courtney Jacob, who went 4-for-8 from the field and was 5-for-6 from the free-throw line to finish with a team-high 14 points. Classmate Whitney Fields was two rebounds short of a double-double with 13 points (5-for-10) and eight boards, while freshman Adelle Walton chipped in with nine points and four assists.

The Aztecs (2-0) had three players score in double digits and were led by Jerica Williams, who had a game-high 23 points. Paris Johnson added her second double-double in as many games with 14 points and 12 rebounds, while Quenese Davis finished with 16 points.

SDSU used a 14-0 run early in the first half to jump out to an 18-3 lead. Ashley Bookman then ended an eight-minute scoring drought for The Beach with a layup at the 9:51 mark, kicking off a 7-2 run which cut the 49er deficit to 20-10 with 8:08 remaining in the half.

The Aztecs would eventually go back up by as many as 15 points, but LBSU continued to chip away and a layup by Jacob with 20 seconds on the clock brought the 49ers within nine (31-22) at the break.

Long Beach State, which shot just 22.2 percent in the first half, started to find its rhythm in the second period, shooting 41.9 percent from the field. After a three-pointer by junior Ally Wade, SDSU saw its lead diminish to 46-42 with 12:20 left to play.

LBSU remained within striking distance later in the game, trailing 62-56 with just under three minutes to play, but SDSU made five of its six free throws down the stretch to hold on for the win.

The 49ers will return to the Walter Pyramid this Friday (Nov. 21) when they take on San Jose State at 7 p.m.