Forward, Haley Ison, of the Chico State women’s basketball team scored a total of 24 points on Thursday night, however, not even this proved to be enough. The Cal State Dominguez Toros would go on to complete a second half comeback over the Chico State Wildcats with a final score of 63-69 at Acker Gym.

The Wildcats (10-6) started aggressive attacking the Toros’ 2-3 zone and found buckets right at the elbow and free throw line. Ison was responsible for 14 first quarter points, all coming from the soft spot in the zone.

“I like that shot.I try to shoot that shot a lot at practice so it is just natural for me,” Ison said.

On Jan. 4, the Wildcats were able to cruise past the Toros with a score of 81-64. Senior guard Maddy Wong was lethal from three point line going 7-10 from behind the arc. Tonight, the Toros had her number and limited her to only four points on 1-8 shooting.

“This is like the second round of playing these teams again. I’ve been marked since the first game I played. Teams are face guarding me and trying to not let me get open,” Wong said.

The Toros’ second quarter performance kept them in the game. They limited the Wildcats to 11 points and were able to put up 15 to only be down by four entering the half.

Forward Hannah Washington was set up to guard 6 foot 3 inch senior, Ahlisha Henderson, of the Cal State Dominguez Toros.

“In the second half we did not take advantage of the momentum we had because we did not close in the second quarter,” Washington said.  

Once the second half started, the Toros’ game plan switched and they wanted to feed their senior center, Henderson.

“Personally, I’ve been a post my whole life so I have been guarding bigger girls. I am used to it. It’s definitely a challenge when they have the weight and the height on you,” Washington said of the Toros’ centers. 

The Wildcats needed more help from their team if wanted to come out on top. They only had two players score in double digits and they allowed 12 offensive rebounds, most of these courtesy of Henderson.

After trying to foul their way back into the game late, the Toros completed the comeback and left Acker Gym by splitting the series.

The Chico State women’s basketball team will be back at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday at Acker Gym to take on California State Los Angeles.

Matthew Wreden can be reached at [email protected] or @MattWreden70 on Twitter.