The Chico State women’s basketball team cruised to a 75-69 victory with a strong offensive showing on Friday night against Saint Martin’s.
The Wildcats opened the game with a wild start to the first half, with forward Meadow Aragon scoring the first points of the game and forward Madison Parry carrying the momentum throughout the rest.
After the Chico State musical ensemble had the crowd roaring, the game started off strong for the ‘Cats. Aragon tipped the jump ball off to her teammate Parry, and received a pass back for an early layup to put the first two points on the board.
The ‘Cats closed out the first quarter with an impressive 28-14 lead.
Parry led the charge with her team in the first half, collecting 25 points and closing halftime with a score of 37-21.
But Parry’s control on the court wasn’t a lonely fight. She made sure to shout out her teammates.
“My mentality was just to crush their spirits, I was trying to do anything I can; make the one more pass, or if I was open, shoot the shot, and my teammates were feeding me. I have to give all my credits to my teammates,” said Parry.
The lead from the first half came into jeopardy as the Saints kicked off the third quarter with force.
The Saints worked well as a team, converting 53.3% of field goal attempts and 57.1% of three-point attempts, closing out the third quarter with a vengeance. However, the ‘Cats control in the first half kept the Saints strong third quarter from allowing them to close the gap.
The fourth quarter began with a six-point lead for the ‘Cats. Both teams picked up their intensity, with eight personal fouls by the Saints and seven by the ‘Cats in the fourth.
The Saints continued with three three-pointers and two steals, but both teams’ overall efforts remained on par as each scored 26 points during the final period.
The Saints couldn’t recover from the first-half lead built by the ‘Cats, and the game finished with a final score of 75-69.
“I’ve had moments of weaknesses, but overall I think it was a good team win,” Parry said. “Meadow (Aragon) is so great, and she makes my job really easier, and my teammates make my job a lot easier, so I give credit to all of them.”
The ‘Cats now hold an overall record of 6-2 and a conference record of 2-0. Their next game is against Monterey Bay in Seaside, Calif., on Friday at 5:30 p.m.
For information about all Chico State athletics or to keep up with the game live, visit the Wildcat home page, or watch through FloSports.
Malisse Busby can be reached at [email protected] or [email protected].
