RIVERSIDE, Calif.—Led by Brittany Crain's 29 points, UC Riverside defeated CSU Bakersfield 81-61 in women's basketball action Saturday night.

CSUB took a 17-9 lead with 38 seconds remaining in the first quarter when Keri Kleist connected on a three-pointer. Crain scored nine consecutive points to spark an 18-3 UCR run that earned the Highlanders (5-4) a 27-20 lead. Crain would score 17 of UCR's 40 first half points as the Highlanders took a 15-point lead into the break.

The Roadrunners got as close as 11 early in the third quarter, but the Highlanders scored 20 of the final 29 third quarter points. UCR led 64-42 upon the conclusion of the third quarter. The Roadrunners outscored the Highlanders 19-17 in the fourth.

“We finally got off to a fast start, but we didn't play well in the second and third quarters,” said CSUB head coach Greg McCall. “We need to do a better job executing our offense and understand that we are not the same team we were last year and in order for us to be successful, we need to run our system.”

Crain was 11-of-15 from the field and 3-of-5 from three-point range. Crain added seven rebounds, three steals, and two assists. Rejane Vernin recorded 18 points and a team high nine rebounds. Michelle Curray scored 14 points.

Batabe Zempare led CSU Bakersfield with 12 points. The 6-2 forward tallied her 25th career double-double as she grabbed 11 rebounds. Alyssa Shannon also scored 12 for the 'Runners. The Highlanders outshot the Roadrunners 50.8% (31-of-61) to 30.6 (19-of-62) and outrebounded CSUB 44-34. The 'Runner bench would post 28 points, compared to 12 for their UCR counterparts.

The Roadrunners (1-9) travel to No. 7 Oregon State (7-0) Tuesday for a special 11 a.m. tip. The Roadrunners return home Dec. 19 for a 1 p.m. matchup against Cal Poly. Tickets are available at Vallitix.com.

~www.GoRunners.com~