LAS VEGAS - Cal State Fullerton women's basketball was knocked out of the Big West Tournament in the quarterfinal round on Wednesday by the No. 1 seed UC Davis Aggies by a score of 61-54. Senior forward Joy Krupa rose to the occasion once again for the Titans as she had career highs in points (25) and rebounds (16). Her 16 rebounds are the most by a Titan in the Big West Tournament.
"We fought all year and never gave up," head coach Jeff Harada said. "I don't look at this year as a failure at all. We dealt with so much adversity and injuries but we never gave up and learned how to win. I'm so proud of this team."
Fullerton (4-18) scored first in the game but that was the only lead the Titans would hold over the Aggies (11-2). UCD led 32-16 at halftime but, like Tuesday and like they did all season, the Titans fought back in the second half and won the third quarter 18-9. The entire fourth quarter was a battle as the Aggie lead hovered around seven but the Titans cut it to four, 52-48, with 3:55 left in the game. Despite the Aggies not making a field goal for the final five minutes of the game, they made their free throws and hung on to win the game.
After recording 28 in the opening round, the second-most of the season, the Titans recorded a season-low seven turnovers against the Aggies on Wednesday. But, the Titans shot the ball well on Tuesday and unfortunately did not on Wednesday. For the game, Fullerton went 22-72 (30.6%) from the field, 4-29 (13.8%) beyond the arc and just 6-10 (60%) at the line. Fullerton was 6-36 (16.7%) overall at halftime.
Krupa shot 11-22 on her way to her career-high 25 points. With her 16 rebounds, Krupa also had two assists and one steal. Clarissa Rodarte posted a career-high 11 points to go with five rebounds and two assists. They were were the only Titans to score 10+ points.
"This group is full of big hearts, on the court and off the court," Krupa said. "I love playing with this group and they were so supportive of me during these two games to just keep driving and keep attacking. I think the future is bright for this team."
