BOX SCORE

LA JOLLA, Calif. --- Senior Megann Alberts scored 13 points and sophomore Jessilyn Conicelli added 10 points and 10 rebounds as Biola defeated NCAA Division II UC San Diego 56-50 in an exhibition game at the RIMAC Arena in La Jolla Saturday night.

The Eagles overcame a pair of 10-point first-half deficits and a three-point halftime lead to defeat the Tritons, who were picked to place second in the highly-competitive California Collegiate Athletic Association. Biola outscored UCSD 36-27 in the second half after heading to the locker room trailing 23-20.

The game got off to a slow start for the Eagles, who fell behind 15-5 in the first eight minutes. Biola still trailed by 10 at 23-13 with 4:18 left to play in the first half before Alberts scored five straight points including converting on a three-point play to cut the lead to five. Conicelli then added a layup with 1:41 to go to make it 23-20 at halftime.

After UC San Diego scored the first three points of the second half, Biola rattled off the next seven to take its first lead since early in the game at 27-26. Despite a number of ties, the Eagles never relinquished the lead after that. Biola would stretch its lead to as many as nine at 52-43 with 2:53 to go. The Tritons immediately closed the gap back to three at 52-49 with 1:23 to go, but Biola hit its free throws down the stretch to secure the win.

Freshman point guard Charrise Reese scored 12 points--eight from the free-throw line--and had four assists in her first action as an Eagle. She also had two steals and a pair of boards in 35 minutes. Sophomore Jenna French also reached double-figures for Biola, scoring 11 points and adding five rebounds.

The Eagles shot 37.7 percent in the game while holding UC San Diego to just 30.8 percent. That negated a 43-36 Triton edge on the boards including a 17-12 advantage on the offensive glass.

Biola opens the regular season on Friday (Nov. 7), hosting Lewis-Clark State College (Idaho) at 2:00 p.m. in Chase Gymnasium.