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Jessica Fontenette vs Chico at NCAA 1

Jefferson Hits Late Winner, Otters Advance To Semis

| By: By Kevin Gilmore
Senior guard Jessica Fontenette passes for one of her game-high six assists in Saturday’s NCAA Regional win over Chico State.

Otters out-score Chico State 10-0 over final 4:08 to win 66-64, will play Western Wash. Monday

BOX SCORE
BELLINGHAM, Wash. — When Cal State Monterey Bay and Chico State meet in women's basketball, they might as well skip the opening 35 minutes and cut to the chase. True to form, Saturday's NCAA West Regional opener between the CCAA foes went down to the wire with Brittany Jefferson's (Palmdale/Antelope Valley JC) layup with 3.9 seconds remaining capping a furious 10–0 rally to close the game and give the Otters a 66–64 win in Western Washington's Carver Gym.

“It wasn't drawn up that way,” said Jefferson after her game–winner. “Jess (Fontenette) saw me and I was a little bit nervous when she gave me the ball.”

CSUMB (20–8) will advance to play host Western Washington Monday night. Western defeated Academy of Art 70–50 in Saturday's late game.

Chico State, the 2013 CCAA Champion, concludes its season at 23–6.

Angelique Bailey vs Chico at NCAA 1
“We talked a lot about how this game was going to be won in the last 20 minutes over the last several days,” said CSUMB Head Coach Renee Jimenez, who now has guided the Otters to three consecutive 20–win seasons. “I thought (the team) really bought into our game plan and Coach (Tina) Samaniego had a great scout today.”

The Otters also got huge production from their bench with senior Gabby Munsch (Lodi/CSU San Marcos) leading both teams with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Sophomore guard Angelique Bailey (Fontana/Etiwanda HS) added a season–high 12 points, including five points in the final rally that proved to be the difference. In total, the Otter bench out–scored Chico's bench 37–14 and out–rebounded Chico's bench 22–8.

“I thought Lique and Gabby gave us a huge lift off the bench,” said Jimenez. “We knew we had great depth, that's probably the one X–factor we have over Chico. For our bench to go for 37 tonight, that's probably the difference in the game.”

Saturday's rubber match—each team won in the other's gym during the regular season—featured 10 ties and 15 lead changes as the teams took turns playing front runner throughout the evening. The Otters led by as many as eight points late in the first half before Chico rallied to seemingly take control of the game by building its own eight–point lead at 64–56 with less than four minutes to play.
Gabby Munsch vs. Chico at NCAA 1

That's when the Otter defense took over, shutting down Chico over the final 4:08 while a trio of players hit big shots to bring CSUMB back from the brink.

Bailey got the rally started by knocking down a big three–pointer to get the Otters to within four at 64–60 inside three minutes to play. A Jessica Fontenette (Chino Hills/Bishop Amat) steal on the ensuing Wildcat possession led to a pair of Munsch free throws that trimmed the deficit to two points.

Two more defensive stops got the ball back into the hands of Bailey with less than a minute to play. She drove the lane, drew a foul and knocked down both free throws to tie the score at 64–64 with 52 ticks left.

Jazmine Miller had a chance to restore Chico's lead but missed from close range and Holly Holcomb (Ventura/Buena HS) grabbed the defensive rebound with the shot clock off to set up the final play.
Brittani Jefferson vs Chico at NCAA 1

Chico took away CSUMB's first option on the final Otter possession, but Fontenette improvised, cutting across the lane to find Jefferson in the low post for a bunny that put the Otters back on top with less than four seconds to play.
“We knew it was going to be a chess match, trying to out–think one another and out–coach one another,” said Jimenez. “(We) had great poise down the stretch and we executed and that's huge in March.”

On their final possession, the Wildcats got the ball in to Courtney Hamilton, but her coast-to-coast sprint couldn't beat the final buzzer.

In addition to Munsch and Bailey, Jefferson finished with 14 points while Fontenette chipped in six assists and three steals. Miller led Chico State with 16 points.







GO OTTERS!




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