It’s easy to forget slow starts when you score a season-high 39 points in the second half, but it wasn’t enough of a comeback for the Long Beach State women’s basketball team who fell to host Fresno State, 76-63, Monday night in front of 2,125 fans at Save Mart Center.

LBSU (3-8), which trailed by 20 points early in the second period, cut the gap to five with 2:29 left to play, but FS hit a pair of three-pointers down the stretch to run away with the 76-63 victory. The 49ers, who shot 45.2 percent in the second period, finished the game with a 40.7 field goal percentage.

The Beach had a trio of double-figure scorers, led by Courtney Jacob, who finished the evening with 15 points and five rebounds. Lynea Williams and Whitney Fields added 11 points apiece, while Kaiti O’Brien pulled down a team-high seven boards.

Fresno State (8-4) jumped out to an early 7-0 lead before junior Brett Timmonsgot the 49ers on the board with a jumper at the 16:14 mark. LBSU fell behind by as many as eight points before cutting the deficit to 14-11 thanks to a three-pointer by sophomore Melanie Lisnock with 11:39 remaining in the half.

The home team eventually pulled ahead in the final minutes as The Beach was held scoreless after a layup by Ally Wade at the 2:40 mark. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, scored 13 points to close out the half with a 43-24 lead.

The Bulldogs came out of the break and hit a quick three-pointer before LBSU put together a solid run, using a 19-7 spurt to come within 10 at 53-43 with 10:30 on the clock. The 49ers would close the gap to three (58-55) after a fastbreak layup by Williams, but were unable to get any closer.

Hayley Munro paced Fresno State with 17 points and nine rebounds, while Bailey Amundsen chipped in 15 points.

Long Beach State will return to action in its Big West Conference opener at UC Santa Barbara on Friday, Jan. 2. The 49ers and Gauchos are set to tip-off at 7 p.m.

From Reports By Long Beach State Sports Information Department