HENDERSON, Nev. - Cal State Fullerton women's basketball has ended their season with an 82-75 loss to Hawai'i after two overtimes in the Big West Quarterfinal on Wednesday night.

"It's been an exciting day in the quarterfinals today, and I think we capped it off with another exciting game," Head Coach Jeff Harada said in a press conference. "It's unfortunate that one of these teams had to lose tonight, but I think both teams played really tough, really hard."

Una Jovanovic started the scoring off with a mid-range, pull-back jump shot, and Gabi Vidmar sank her first three-pointer to retake the lead 11-10 before the media timeout in the first quarter.

The Titans continued the momentum following the timeout as Aixchel Hernandez blocked a shot, and Ashlee Lewis collected the rebound. Jovanovic then beat the buzzer to finish the first quarter with a layup.

Inside and In ��#TusksUp pic.twitter.com/rmIz1RmmHB

— Titans Women's Basketball (@FullertonWBB) March 9, 2023

Jovanovic contributed 16 points to the Titans' production on 7-of-16 shooting, two assists and five rebounds.

The second quarter saw the most three-pointers made by the Titans who struggled from behind the arc on 6-of-19 shooting. Ruby MacDonald made two three-pointers on 2-of-4 shooting, putting up six points for the Titans. Fujika Nimmo also drained a triple on 1-of-5 shooting from three-point territory. 

Controlling the ball and producing offensively became an issue for the Titans toward the end of the second quarter. The Titans trailed 33-30 at the break.

Lewis played one of her best games, leading all scorers with 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field and 6-of-7 shooting from the free-throw line. Her 22 points set a new career high for the junior center.

And-one ��️#TusksUp | @ashleelewis_32 pic.twitter.com/VgVqIMXz26

— Titans Women's Basketball (@FullertonWBB) March 9, 2023

"She played with a ton of energy and confidence and gave us a spark and just played fearless tonight," Harada said in a press conference. "I thought she was one of the better post players throughout the game tonight on both teams."

In the fourth quarter, Nimmo tied the game at 49 following a deuce by Jovanovic to put the Titans within reach of grabbing the lead. Hawai'i took a 51-49 lead, but Nimmo tied the game again with a layup.

TIE GAME#TusksUp | @fujika_n pic.twitter.com/f2QhG8Cs8o

— Titans Women's Basketball (@FullertonWBB) March 9, 2023

This seesaw of a game was not over yet, as both teams could not stop fouling one another. The Titans, who were not sent to the free-throw line once in the first half, went 6-for-7 at the line in the second half.

Gabi Vidmar struggled throughout the game but tied the game for the Titans twice in the fourth quarter on 4-of-4 shooting. Vidmar connected her second bucket from behind the arc and capitalized on go-ahead free-throw shots to put the Titans ahead 65-63 with 50 seconds left in overtime.

The Titans were 19 seconds away from advancing to the Big West Semi-finals before Hawai'i tied the game at 67 with a three-pointer, forcing a second overtime. 

Despite the tough fight, the Titans could not hold on in the final five minutes. A mishandled ball by Jovanovic and a technical foul with less than a minute left sent the Rainbow Wahine back to the line twice. With nine seconds left, the Titans had no time to make a comeback.

"I was just as positive as I could be because they deserve to hear that," Harada said in a press conference. "They played their hearts out, and I had nothing negative to say to this team. They played a great game."

Although Fullerton's road to a Big West title has been blocked, the future is bright for the program. With only three seniors leaving and three players returning from injuries, the young Titans team will focus on preparing themselves for the next Big West Tournament. 

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