SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. - On Thursday, February 3rd, the Sonoma State women's basketball team came away with a crucial and nail biting win on the road against SF State to end their three game skid and get back into the win column for the first time since January 15th. After having to cancel their game with Stanislaus State last Thursday, the Seawolves took a late loss to rival Chico State to go 0-1 on the weekend and drop below .500 in CCAA play. Prior to the three game losing streak, the Seawolves had won 4 of 5 games and were developing a nice rhythm as the conference playoff picture began to take shape. Their 63-60 win tonight puts them back even at .500 in conference play at 6-6 and gives them some much needed momentum as they will look for the weekend sweep against Monterey Bay on Saturday. 

A high scoring first quarter would set the tone early as head coach Rich Shayewitz and his squad finished the first half with a 20-12 lead. Despite shooting under 40% from the field in their first ten minutes of action, the Seawolves hit 3 big three pointers to help develop their early lead. Senior guard Aaryn Pickett hit back-to-back three's on the Seawolves opening possessions to get her scoring night started. Despite having her worst shooting night of the season in the team's previous game against Chico State, senior Taylor Johnson would bounce back with an efficient and productive start to the game as she recorded 6 points and hit a three pointer in her opening minutes of the first quarter. 

Sonoma State would hold a six point lead heading into the half as their defense was also firing on all cylinders as they held the Gators to under 30 points in the first twenty minutes of action. A 15-point third quarter would extend SSU's lead to nine heading into the fourth quarter. SF State would make it interesting, however, as they would explode for a 22-point quarter. Similar to SSU in the first, SF would shoot just 32% from the field but went a staggering 5-10 from three to help claw their way back into the game. 

The Seawolves nine point lead would almost seem to vanish into thin air as the Gators came out of the break and connected on three straight three pointers to tie the game at 47 a piece. Aaryn Pickett and Zane Sheckherd would help end the run as they would convert on back-to-back buckets to extend their lead back out to four. Sheckherd would come alive in the fourth for SSU and have a big quarter to help seal the deal. After another layup from Sheckherd to make it 55-49 with under five to play, SF State would come roaring back once again with a couple free throws and a massive three from Ashley Hart to make it just a one point game once again. 

The story of the final two minutes of the game was the Seawolves free throw shooting. After the Gator three with just over two minutes remaining, Sonoma State would go a combined 8-8 from the stripe from three different players to help ice the game. Camille Johnson and Aaryn Pickett each went 2-2 from the line while Sheckherd went 4-4 on two pairs of free throws to finish with 8 fourth quarter points. The Seawolves would force a turnover nearly as time expired to come away with the win, 63-60 over SF State. Three of the Seawolves five starters all finished in double figures. Pickett would lead the team with 15 points on 5-11 shooting. Sheckherd would follow with 12 of her own and go 6-6 from the free throw line. Chastity Spady also had a productive game as she got the start and finished with 11 points. Spady struggled from the field but connected on a three and went 6-6 from the free throw line as well. For the first time this season, SSU was absolutely perfect from the free throw line on an astonishing 25-25! Camille Johnson, Zane Sheckherd, and Chasity Spady were all 6-6 while Aaryn Pickett, Taylor Johnson, and Cielo Gonzalez combined to go 7-7 from that mark. Gonzalez also made her first appearance off the COVID list since January 15th. She would finish with 9 points off the bench on an efficient 2-4 from the field in her 14 minutes of action.     

Sonoma State improves to 7-11 overall and an even 6-6 in CCAA play. The Seawolves will stay on the road and head to the coast to take on Monterey Bay on Saturday as they look to continue their winning ways and sweep the weekend. Live stats and stream links can be found at sonomaseawolves.com and all games can be streamed on the CCAA Network. Be sure to follow your Seawolves on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to get all the latest SSU athletics updates and information. Sonoma State athletics also has launched a new fan app in partnership with From Now On. Download the free app today in both the Apple and Google Play stores by searching Sonoma State Seawolves in the app store. @SonomaSeawolves | #NomaNation