| Click
here to return to stories from September through January.
(Feb 1, 2003) - For the
second game in a row, the Highlanders played with only seven
players and lost to the Cal State Northridge Matadors 69-59
at the Matadome in Northridge on Saturday night.
Northridge (2-17, 2-7) took
a 40-33 lead after a three-pointer by junior Kim Gildersleeve
with 14:00 remaining in the game, but Riverside (4-15, 1-7)
held CSN to only one point over the next four minutes and
used a 8-1 run to tie it at 41 with 10:02 to go.
The Matadors came right
back with a 12-2 run, five by freshman Casandra Markovich,
to take a 53-43 lead with 5:46 left in the game. CSN extended
to their biggest lead at 65-52 with 1:17 left and won 69-59.
Sophomore guard Casandra
Reeves led the Highlanders with 17 points and three steals
while sophomore guard Holly Peterson added 13 points and a
career-high seven rebounds. Junior forward Crystal Harris
had 11 points and eight rebounds. Riverside shot 21-of-66
(31.8%) from the field and 5-of-21 (23.8%) from three-point
range.
Freshman forward Ofa Tulikihihifo
led the Matadors with 15 points and 10 rebounds while junior
Brezya Rhodes added 15 points. Northridge shot 26-of-55 (47.3%)
from the field and 3-of-11 (27.3%) behind the arc.
Northridge led the rebounding
battle 45-39 but committed 15 turnovers to 9 for Riverside,
a season low.At the line, CSN hit 14-of-21 (66.7%) while UCR
hit 12-of-16 (75.0%).
The two teams exchanged
the lead six times in the early going but the Matadors pulled
in front with a 10-3 run to go up 21-15 with 4:48 left in
the first half. The Highlanders answered with a 8-2 run to
tie it at 23 but CSN had the final word with the last four
points of the half to go into the locker room with the lead,
27-23.
UCR struggled shooting the
ball, hitting only 9-of-33 (27.3%) from the field while CSN
hit 12-of-30 (40.0%) from the field.
The Highlanders return to
action at home on Thursday night against UC Irvine at 7:10
PM.
(Feb 6, 2003) - Sophomore
Holly Peterson led the Highlanders with a double-double of
24 points and 10 rebounds, both career-highs, in their 75-59
win over the UC Irvine Anteaters at the Student Recreation
Center on Thursday night.
The Highlanders (5-15, 2-7)
led 48-35 with 16:14 left in the game but the Anteaters (12-8,
5-4) used an 11-0 run to cut the margin to 48-46 with 11:43
to go.
UCI kept battling and took
their first lead since the early going at 56-54 with 8:01
to go but UCR ended the game on a 21-3 run, 10 by Casandra
Reeves.
Riverside shot 24-of-53
(45.3%) from the field and 4-of-10 (40.0%) from three-point
range while Irvine shot 22-of-69 (31.9%) from the field and
9-of-32 (28.1%) from behind the arc. The 32 three-point attempts
was a school record.
The Highlanders won the
rebounding battle 39-38 and committed 15 turnovers to 17 for
the Anteaters.
Reeves had 22 points, 12-of-12
from the line while UCR hit 23-of-24 (95.8%) for the game.
Junior Crystal Harris and freshman Kirsten Muir each had 10
points and seven rebounds.
Sophomore Courtney Ferguson
led the Anteaters with 15 points while junior Christine Calloway
had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Riverside
held UCI leading scorer Wendy Gabbe to eight points on 3-of-14
shooting.
The two teams exchanged
the lead on five occasions in the early going but the Anteaters
jumped ahead on Lisa Faulkner's three-pointer. However, UCR
used a 18-0 run to go ahead 31-16 with 7:32 to go in the half.
UCI closed the gap to 10 at the half, 39-29.
The Highlanders shot 15-of-27
(55.6%) from the field and 3-of-6 (50.0%) from behind the
arc, including 13 of their first 17 shots. The Anteaters hit
10-of-31 (32.3%) from the field and only 3-of-13 (23.1%) from
three-point range.
The Highlanders return to
action at home on Saturday night against Long Beach State
at 7:10 PM.
(Feb 8, 2003) - The UC Riverside
Highlanders lost to the Long Beach State 49ers 75-70
at the Student Recreation Center on Saturday night.
The two teams exchanged
the lead six times during the beginning of the second half
until Long Beach (10-10, 7-2) took a 52-46 lead with 8:56
left in the game. The Highlanders (5-16, 2-8) cut the lead
to three on two occasions but the Beach used a 6-0 run to
take their biggest lead at 69-60 with 1:24 to go and take
the 75-70 win.
LBSU had a huge advantage
at the line, hitting 22-of-30 (73.3%) to 15-of-21 (71.4%)
for UCR. The two teams combined for 46 fouls on the night.
Junior Crystal Harris led
the Highlanders with 22 points and five rebounds while sophomore
Casandra Reeves added 17 points. UCR shot 26-of-65 (40.0%)
from the field and 3-of-14 (21.4%) from behind the arc.
Senior Jinga Gosschalk led
the 49ers with 20 points while senior Glory Johnson added
16 points and 12 rebounds. Junior Jennifer Baker had 12 points
and 14 boards and junior Lauren Bull added 10 points.LBSU
shot 25-of-64 (39.1%) from the field and 3-of-13 (13.1%) from
three-point range.
LBSU outrebounded UCR 48-38
but committed 17 turnovers to 15 for the Highlanders.
The Highlanders jumped out
to an early 10-1 lead to open the game, holding the 49ers
without a field goal for the first five minutes of the game.
However, the 49ers chipped away at the lead and tied the score
at 27-all with 3:09 to go.
Long Beach took their first
lead of the game on a three-pointer by freshman Monica Quan
to go up 32-31 but sophomore Holly Peterson answered with
a trey of her own and UCR went into the half with a 36-34
lead.
UCR shot 12-of-28 (42.9%)
from the field while Long Beach shot 14-of-36 (38.9%) from
the field, including 1-of-8 (12.5%) from behind the arc.
The Highlanders return to
action on the road at Cal State Fullerton on Saturday night
at 7:00 PM.
(Feb 15, 2003) - Four players
scored in double figures as the UC Riverside Highlanders defeated
the Cal State Fullerton Titans 69-58
at Titan Gym on Saturday night.
Riverside (6-16, 3-8) opened
the half on a 9-2 run finished off by a Crystal Harris drive
and layup to take a 41-28 advantage with 16:52 left.
The Titans (6-16, 4-7) got
as close as nine on four occasions but never closer as UCR
pushed their margin to 62-43 with 5:54 left, using a 10-0
run and holding Fullerton scoreless over a five minute period.
CSF used a 15-7 run to end the game to close the gap to 69-58.
Harris led the Highlanders
with 15 points and six rebounds while sophomore guard Casandra
Reeves had 15 points, five rebounds and six assists. Sophomore
Holly Peterson had 13 points and junior Trecha Kennedy added
10 points. UCR shot 25-of-61 (41.0%) from the field and 4-of-13
(30.8%) from three-point range.
Rochelle Ortega led the
Titans with 13 points and six rebounds while Nikki Lee added
13 points. CSF shot 18-of-56 (32.1%) from the field and 5-of-14
(35.7%) from the field.
The Highlanders hit 15-of-19
(78.9%) from the line to 17-of-25 (68.0%) for Fullerton.
The Titans had 26 turnovers,
14 in the second half while UCR had 15. Fullerton edged Riverside
in rebounding 45-37.
Riverside started fast,
jumping out to an 8-0 lead just three and a half minutes into
the game. However, Fullerton battled back and took their first
lead of the game at 19-18 on three consecutive free throws
by Andrea Adams with 6:32 left in the half and Ortega tacked
on another free throw to go up 20-18.
The Highlanders used a 10-2
run, highlighted by back-to-back treys from Reeves, to go
up 28-22 and take a 32-26 lead into the half.
The Highlanders return to
action at the University of Idaho on Wednesday.
(Feb 19, 2003) - Sophomore
guard Casandra Reeves hit three treys to break the single
season record for three-pointers with 59 but the Highlanders
fell to the University of Idaho Vandals, 71-61
in Moscow on Wednesday night.
UI still led 47-32 with
14:22 left in the game and still ed by 11 at 12:21, but Riverside
(6-17, 3-9) answered with a 9-0 run to get within two at50-48
with 7:45 to go. However, the Vandals (8-15, 6-7) hit back-to-back
treys once again to go up eight. UCR cut the lead to two on
twice more but the Vandals outscored the Highlanders 10-2
to end the game, including 5-of-6 from the line.
Reeves and junior Crystal
Harris each scored 18 points while sophomore guard Holly Peterson
had 13 points. UCR shot 24-of-65 (36.9%) from the field and
4-of-16 (25.0%) from the three-point line. Reeves broke the
previous three-point record of 58 held by Debbie Fischer (93-94).
Taylor Benson led the Vandals
with 23 points and nine rebounds while Autumn Fielding added
15 points and seven boards. Toni Kinsey had 12 and Keisha
Moore had 11 points. Idaho shot 22-of-57 (38.6%) from the
field and 12-of-34 (35.3%) from behind the arc. Idaho outrebounded
Riverside 44-37 and committed 11 turnovers to eight for the
Highlanders.
The game was a 3-point barrage
from the get-go. Three Vandals hit long-range shots in the
contest’s first minute and a half to open up a 9-2 lead.
That forced Riverside to take a quick timeout, but the break
didn’t stop UI. Idaho continued to shoot well and stretched
its edge to double digits at 13-2 less than five minutes in.
The Vandals would maintain
the advantage the rest of the half and eventually stretched
it to as many as 15 on two occasions. The Vandals knocked
down seven treys in the opening period and entered the break
with a 36-24 margin.
The Highlanders return to
action next Thursday at home against Cal State Northridge
at 7:10 PM.
(Feb 27, 2003) - The UC
Riverside Highlanders overcame a slow start to defeat the
Cal State Northridge Matadors, 57-51
at the Student Recreation Center on Thursday night.
With the win, Riverside
improved to 7-17 overall and 4-9 in the Big West Conference
while Northridge drops to 3-22 overall and 3-11 in conference.
UCR moves a game and a half ahead of CSN for the final playoff
spot and tied with Cal State Fullerton in seventh place.
The Highlanders came out
strong in the second half, outscoring the Matadors 20-7, sparked
by nine points from sophomore Casandra Reeves and five from
junior Crystal Harris, to take a 40-29 lead with 9:53 to go.
Northridge made a comback
with a 16-4 run to regain the lead at 45-44 with 5:05 left
in the game but Harris put Riverside back in front for good,
hitting back-to-back jumpers. UCR hung on for the win 57-51
including hitting 4-of-6 free throws down the stretch.
Harris led the Highlanders
with 17 points and six rebounds while Reeves added 14 points
and six rebounds. Sophomore Jodi Reber had 11 points and seven
rebounds. Riverside shot 19-of-51 (37.3%) from the field and
3-of-12 (25.0%) from three-point range.
Junior Brezya Rhodes had
20 points and seven steals while freshman Heather Cushing
added 16 points and five rebounds. Northridge shot 19-of-56
(33.9%) from the field and 1-of-10 (10.0%) behind the arc.
The Highlanders turned it
over 27 times to 24 for the Matadors but won the rebounding
battle 42-33, only the fifth time this season that they have
outrebounded an opponent.
With a Big West tournament
bid possibly on the line, both teams came out of the gates
slow, as the score stood 5-5 after seven minutes were gone
and 9-9 with 7:08 to go.
Northridge jumped ahead
first on a three-point play by Rhodes but after the two teams
traded buckets, junior Trecha Kennedy hit a three-pointer
to tie it at 16. CSN followed up with a 6-1 run to open up
a 22-17 lead but sophomore Holly Peterson hit a three to close
the gap to 22-20 at the half.
Neither team could shoot
straight or hold on to the ball in the first half as the Highlanders
shot 8-of-28 (28.6%) and the Matadors shot 8-of-27 (29.6%)
while both teams turned it over 14 times.
Sophomore Agy Frankovits
reinjured her knee in the first half of play.
The Highlanders return to
action on Saturday night at home against the University of
the Pacific Tigers at 7:10 PM.
(Mar 1, 2003) - The UC Riverside
Highlanders fell to the University of the Pacific Tigers 79-52
at the Student Recreation Center on Saturday night.
The game turned into a snail
pace as the fouls piled up in the second half. The Highlanders
were called for 28 personal fouls (four players fouled out)
and the Tigers went to the line 37 times, hitting 20 (54.1%)
while committing 21 fouls and sending UCR to the line 20 times
and converting 14 (70.0%). Riverside finished the game with
four players for the second time this season, both against
Pacific, playing the final 30.8 seconds with four.
There were three lead changes
and three ties in the early going as both teams shot the ball
well but the Tigers (13-13, 10-5) pulled away hitting nine
of their first 10 shots. Guard Nancy Dinges had 13 points
and three treys to open the game and helped spur a 13-0 run
as UOP took a 22-9 lead with 12:08 left in the half.
The Highlanders (7-18, 4-10)
tightened up the defense, and the offense used a 9-1 run to
get within 23-18 with 7:35 to go but Pacific answered right
back with a 12-2 run to go up 35-20 with 2:39 left. UCR hit
a layup and free throw to go into the half down 35-23.
The Tigers shot a blistering
12-of-19 (63.2%) from the field in the first half but hurt
themselves by hitting only 7-of-16 (43.8%) of their free throws.
The Highlanders hit 10-of-26 (38.5%) from the field and only
went to the line four times, hitting two. UOP outrebounded
UCR 20-11.
In the second half, the
Tigers used a 13-2 run to go up 60-36 with 9:37 left in the
game and cruised the rest of the way. UOP pushed the lead
to as many as 30 before Holly Peterson hit a three to end
the game, 79-52.
Junior Crystal Harris led
the Highlanders with 11 points on 3-of-11 shooting and sophomore
Casandra Reeves had seven points on 3-of-16 shooting. UCR
shot 18-of-58 (31.0%) from the field and 2-of-17 (11.8%) from
behind the arc.
Dinges led the Tigers with
22 points and senior forward Vanessa Dupont had 18 points
and 11 rebounds. Junior center Gillian d'Hondt had 13 points.
UOP shot 26-of-41 (63.4%) from the field and 4-of-7 (57.1%)
from three-point range.
The Tigers outrebounded
UCR 48-23, 28-12 in the second half and had 19 turnovers while
Riverside committed 11.
The Highlanders return to
action on the road at Cal Poly on Thursday at 7:00 PM..
(Mar 6, 2003) - Sophomore
guard Casandra Reeves poured in a career-high 36 points to
lead the UC Riverside Highlanders over the Cal Poly Mustangs
77-67 at Mott Gym in San
Luis Obispo on Thursday night.
With the win, the Highlanders
improved to 8-18 overall and 5-10 in the Big West, securing
the final spot in the Big West tournament. The Mustangs fell
to 9-16 overall and 5-10 in the Big West.
Reeves made 14 of 24 floor
shots, including five of 10 from three-point range, and all
three of her free throws while tying her career-high in steals
with seven. Junior guard Trecha Kennedy added 13 points off
the bench for the Highlanders and junior guard/forward Crystal
Harris scored 12 points.
Cal Poly was led by two
seniors -- forward Heather Journey with 13 and point guard
Kari Duperron with 12.
Back-to-back three-pointers
by freshman guard Jennifer Dooley gave Cal Poly a 31-26 lead
with 36 seconds remaining in the first half and the Mustangs
settled for a 31-28 advantage at the break.
Cal Poly led 44-38 with
12:52 to play after freshman guard Anetero Uiagalelei made
a three-pointer. Two free throws by sophomore guard Michelle
Henke gave the Mustangs a 47-43 lead with 11:29 to play.
However, Riverside went
on a 16-0 run, including three treys by Reeves, to turn the
game around, building a 59-47 lead with 7:15 to play. Cal
Poly never got closer than five points the rest of the way.
The Highlanders made 53.8
percent (14-of-26) of their shots from the field, finishing
with 46.4 percent (26-of-56) while holding Cal Poly to 40
percent (22-of-55). Riverside also hit 7-of-15 (46.7%) of
their three-pointers and 18-of-25 (72.0%) from the free throw.
CP hit 8-of-19 (42.1%) of their treys and 15-of-27 (55.6%)
of their free throws.
The Mustangs outrebounded
UC Riverside 45-28, led by Henke with 10 and freshman guard
Courtney Uphoff with nine. Cal Poly turned the ball over 28
times compared to 18 for UC Riverside.
The Highlanders play their
regular season finale at UC Santa Barbara on Saturday night
at 7:00 PM.
(Mar 8, 2003) - The No.
17 UC Santa Barbara Gauchos cruised to an easy win over the
UC Riverside Highlanders 76-36
at The Thunderdome on Saturday night.
Santa Barbara (23-4, 15-1)
opened the game on a 10-0 run and made its first eight shots
from the floor. A layup by Lindsay Taylor at the 15:32 mark
gave Gauchos a 15-4 advantage, one that would not dip into
single-digits the rest of the way. UCSB shot a blistering
72.7% before halftime, and took a 42-16 lead into the locker
rooms.
The second half did not
get any better for Riverside as they got as close as 24 on
four occasions but Santa Barbara led by as many as 43 in the
closing minutes.
Overall, the Highlanders
shot 16-of-59 (27.1%) from the field and 2-of-16 (12.5%) from
three-point range. The Gauchos shot 27-of-49 (55.1%) from
the field and 4-of-10 (40.0%) from behind the arc.
UCR also only hit 2-of-6
(33.3%) from the free throw line.UCSB had a huge advantage
at the line, hitting 18-of-22 (81.8%).
Santa Barbara also had the
advanatage on the boards, 39-32 but the turnover battle was
even at 20.
Junior Crystal Harris led
the Highlanders with 14 points, the only one in double figures.
Sophomore Casandra Reeves had nine points and four steals.
Taylor recorded her fifth
double-double of the season with a game-high 22 points and
10 rebounds. Sophomore forward Kristen Mann scored 17 to go
along with seven boards and five assists, while junior Lisa
Willett added 11 points and made two-of-three shots from beyond
the arc.
Riverside concluded the
regular season at 8-19 and 5-11 and will meet second-seeded
Pacific in the Big West Quarterfinals on Wednesday at approximately
2:30 p.m. in the Anaheim Convention Center. UCR tied for the
seventh spot with Cal State Fullerton but won the tiebreaker
by virtue of the season sweep.Meanwhile No. 3 Long Beach State
takes on No. 6 Cal Poly at noon, No. 1 UC Santa Barbara takes
on No. 8 Cal State Fullerton at 6:00 PM and No. 4 UC Irvine
squares off with No. 5 Idaho in the nightcap at approximately
8:30.
(Mar 10, 2003) - Sophomore
guard Casandra Reeves was named Big West First Team All-Conference
and junior forward Crystal Harris was named Honorable Mention
on Monday, announced by the Big West Conference.
Reeves leads the team in
scoring at 15.2 points per game, assists at 3.2 per game and
steals at 2.6 per game. Joining her on the All-Big West team
were: Lindsey Taylor (UC Santa Barbara), Kristen Mann (UC
Santa Barbara), Gillian d’Hondt (Pacific), Glory Johnson
(Long Beach State), and Ofa Tulikihihifo (Cal State Northridge).
Harris was Honorable Mention, averaging 13.1 ppg and 5.6 rpg.
Taylor was named Player
of the Year, Tulikihihifo was named Freshman of the Year and
Mark French of UC Santa Barbara was named Coach of the Year
for the seventh time.
The Highlanders have qualified
for the Big West Conference Tournament for the second straight
year. The tournament begins Wednesday at the Anaheim Convention
Center. UCR, seeded seventh, face second-seeded University
of the Pacific (14-13, 11-5 BWC) at 2:30 PM.
The Tigers swept the Highlanders
this season, winning at home in double overtime 87-83 on January
30 and at the Student Recreation Center in Riverside on March
1, UOP cruised to a 79-52 win.
Other first-round pairings
are No. 3 Long Beach State vs. No. 6 Cal Poly at 12:00 p.m.,
No. 1 UC Santa Barbara vs. No. 8 Cal State Fullerton at 6
p.m. and No. 4 UC Irvine vs. No. 5 Idaho at 8:30 p.m.
Semifinals are on Friday
with the championship game Saturday at 1 p.m. (Fox Sports
West 2).
(Mar 12, 2003) - The No.
7 seed UC Riverside Highlanders fell a basket short in their
upset bid against the No. 2 seed University of the Pacific
Tigers 63-61 in the quarterfinals
of the Big West Tournament in Anaheim on Wednesday afternoon.
With the score tied at 61,
Highlander guard Casandra Reeves drove to the basket with
10 seconds to go but was double teamed and dished to Astrid
Spegel who missed a three-pointer with six seconds to go.
Tiger forward Vanessa Dupont rebounded the ball and Jasmine
Ewing went the length of the floor for a layup with one second
left to give Pacific the 63-61 win.
Reeves put on a show for
the Anaheim crowd and led all scorers with 29 points on 13-of-23
shooting and had three steals, but there were no other Highlanders
in double figures. UCR shot 25-of-54 (46.3%) from the field,
the third highest this season, and 5-of-16 (31.3%) from three-point
range.
Corinne Wong led the Tigers
with 18 points, three treys, six rebounds and five assists.
Gillian d'Hondt added 18 points, 16 in the first half. UOP
shot 23-of-44 (52.3%) from the field and 6-of-11 (54.5%) from
three-point range.
Pacific had the edge at
the line, hitting 11-of-14 (78.6%) to 6-of-9 (66.7%) for Riverside.
The Highlanders led most
of the way, opening up a 32-17 lead in the first half after
a 12-3 run with 2:49 left in the half. However, the Tigers
closed the half with a 9-2 run and UCR went into the locker
room up 34-26.
UOP used an 11-5 run to
open the half, closer the UCR margin to 39-37 with 14:36 left
in the game. Riverside extended back to a nine-point margin
at 48-39 after three straight buckets by Reeves but Wong answered
with back-to-back treys.
The Highlander lead reached
six points on several occasions down the stretch but the Tigers
kept coming back and tied it at 61 on two free throws by Wong.
It was the first tie the Tigers had gotten since the game
was tied 6-6.
Riverside was outrebounded
31-22, a difference of eight in the second half. The Tigers
committed 17 turnovers while UCR had 10.
The Highlanders finish the
season at 8-20 overall and 5-11 in the Big West Conference.
(May 1, 2003) - UC Riverside
Head Women’s Basketball Coach Jennifer Young announced
the signing of Madera High School star Heather Bates to a
National Letter of Intent Thursday.
Bates, a 5-11 guard/forward,
averaged 21.3 points and eight rebounds per game, leading
Madera to a 28-2 record and a section championship in 2003.
She will graduate as the school’s career scoring leader
with 1,969 points and was named Fresno Bee Player of the Year.
She was also named the All-TCAC MVP, All-Central Valley MVP,
All-State 2nd team, All State Division I first team and was
named to the city/county all-star team.
“Heather gives us
another exciting scoring presence on the floor,” Young
said. “The versatility of her three-point range combined
with her ability to attack the basket makes her an impact
player at this level. We are excited to add another standout
player that is such a perfect fit for our program.”
(May 20, 2003) - The UC
Riverside Women's Basketball team announced the following
award winners from the 2002-03 season at their awards banquiet
on May 16th.
Most Inspirational: Jennifer Valdez
Most Improved: Holly Peterson
Tough as nails: Holly Peterson/ Casandra Reeves
MVP: Casandra Reeves
Click
here to return to stories from September through January. |
