AZUSA, Calif. – Western Washington University junior guard Maddison Coleman scored 19 points on 7-for-10 shooting, but it wasn't enough for the Vikings to upset No. 6 nationally-ranked UC San Diego Friday evening in a 76-68 loss at the West Region Crossover Classic played at the Felix Event Center on the Azusa Pacific University campus.
 
Coleman, a junior transfer from Sacramento City College, was 7-for-10 shooting and connected on 5-of-7 from 3-point range to lead the Vikings in scoring. Junior forward Kelsey Rogers added 10 points on 5-for-11 shooting for the Vikings.
 
WWU suffered their first defeat of the season to drop to 2-1 on the season. UCSD improved to 2-0 on the season and lead the all-time series vs. WWU 14-4.
 
The Vikings made it a tight two-possession game against the nationally-ranked Tritons with under two minutes remaining in the game, using a 10-0 run to pull to within six points at 71-65. But UCSD held off the WWU comeback attempt for the eight point victory in the first game of the West Region Crossover Classic.
 
WWU got off to a strong start building an 18-12 lead through the first quarter, with Rogers leading the team with four points. WWU used a 9-2 mid-quarter run to build an 11-4 lead and finished on a 5-2 run.
 
UCSD came out on fire in the second quarter, scoring the first 12 points to take a 24-18 lead with 7:03 left before halftime. After opening the quarter 0-for-8 shooting, the Vikings didn't give in and finished hitting four of their final eight shots to trail by only one point, 32-31, going into the half. A pair of free throws by freshman post Carley Zaragoza at the 4:47 mark jump-started an 11-5 run to end the quarter.
 
The Tritons built a double-digit lead near the end of the third quarter, but the hot-shooting Coleman helped keep the Vikings close with a trio of 3-pointers. WWU cut UCSD's lead to one possession at 46-44 at the 4-minute mark in the quarter following back-to-back 3-pointers by Coleman, but the Tritons answered going on an 8-0 run to take a 10-point lead. Coleman hit her third 3-pointer of the quarter as time expired to cut the deficit to seven points at 56-49.
 
UCSD extended their lead to as many as 16 points at 71-55 midway through the fourth quarter, but Western answered with a 10-0 run to pull to with six points at 71-65 with 1:30 remaining. Coleman hit a pair of 3-pointers during the run to begin the contest 5-for-5 from beyond the arc. The 6-0 guard had a chance to cut the lead to one possession with under a minute to play, but missed from 3-point range for the first time in the game.
 
In addition to the double-digit scoring by Coleman and Rogers, junior guard and Southern California native Dani Iwami (hails from Seal Beach) added 8 points on 3-for-9 shooting. Schwecke grabbed a game-high 9 rebounds while also contributing 6 points (3-for-10 FG).
 
The Tritons were led by a game-high 25 points from guard Julia Macabuhay, who was 11-for-17 from the field in her 24 minutes of action. Tyla Turner (18 points, 7-for-14 FG) and Brianna Claros (14 points, 4-for-7 FG, 8 Reb) also scored in double-digits for UCSD.
  The Vikings (2-1) are back in action tomorrow facing tournament host and No. 4 nationally-ranked Azusa Pacific at 8 pm from the Felix Event Center. The game will stream with a pay-per-view option and can be tracked via live stats, with links for both available at WWUVikings.com/Live.
  More information on WWU Basketball can be found online at WWUVikings.com/WBB and via social media on Twitter (@WWUBasketball), Instagram (@wwu.basketball) and Facebook (@WWUwomensbball).
  One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, recording a 20-win season in seven of the last 11 seasons, and 34 times in the 48-year history of the program. WWU has 20 seasons of 20 or more wins under head coach Carmen Dolfo, who is the winningest coach of any sport at WWU and ranks among Division II active and all-time coaching leaders in wins, win percentage and 20-win seasons. The Vikings have reached the NCAA II Tournament in 16 of 21 seasons at the Division II level with two trips to the Final Four. The program has 1,024 all-time wins in the 48-year history of the program, and according to available records, is one of just 16 women's college basketball team across all divisions and levels to reach the milestone.