Box Score LOS ANGELES – Cal State L.A.'s women's basketball team had quite a battle Friday night in a California Collegiate Athletic Association contest with Cal State East Bay and the Golden Eagles emerged with an important victory.

The Golden Eagles used an outstanding defensive performance and some clutch plays down the stretch to beat the Pioneers, 58-49, in the Eagles Nest. Cal State L.A. (11-6, 8-5 CCAA) limited Cal State East Bay to just 26.9 percent shooting in the contest and pulled to within one game of second place in the CCAA.

Paige Melville had a game-high 15 points to lead the Golden Eagles, while Alisha Belt had a strong game with 13 points, five rebounds and five assists. Melville had 12 of her 15 points in the second half.

Stephanie Lopez had 11 points to lead Cal State East Bay (12-8, 9-4 CCAA), while Tori Breshers had 10 points and four rebounds.

Cal State L.A. also got nine important points from Emily Tevez, who knocked down three 3-pointers in 11 efficient minutes. Richelle Najera also made important contributions off the bench with six big rebounds and some strong defense in 27 minutes, while Kaija Powell had seven points, including a key three-point play that put the Golden Eagles up by nine points with 2:40 to go.

Cal State L.A. shot 43.6 percent for the game (17-of-39) and was 8-of-15 from the floor (53.3 percent) in the second half. Cal State East Bay was just 14-of-52 (26.9 percent) for the game and knocked down just 22.2 percent of its shots in the second half.

Cal State East Bay had a slight 37-36 rebounding edge and committed 20 turnovers to 21 for the Golden Eagles. Cal State L.A. was 18-of-33 from the free-throw line, while Cal State East Bay was 17-of-21.

The Golden Eagles scored the first five points of the game on a basket by Destinee La Fountain and a 3-pointer by Tevez, but Cal State East Bay scored eight straight points to take an 8-5 lead. A jumper by Bree Parsons put the Golden Eagles ahead, 14-13 and they led the rest of the way, although the game wasn't decided until the final minutes.

The Golden Eagles had a nine-point lead late in the first half after a 3-pointer by Melville and a free throw by Michaela Reed, but the Pioneers closed the gap to six points, 28-22, by halftime.

A three-point by Tevez gave the Golden Eagles their biggest lead of the game, 38-24, with 14:40 to play and a free throw by Melville kept the margin at 13 points, 39-26, with 12:30 to go.

Cal State East Bay, though, steadily chipped away at the deficit and pulled to within three points, 42-39, with seven minutes to play. A layup by Breshers made it 47-42 with 4:10 to go, but the Golden Eagles went on a 10-2 run to put the game away.

Belt started the run with a pair of free throws and Tina Fantroy added a free throw to make it 50-42. After another layup by Breshers, Powell scored on a driving layup, was fouled and hit the free throw to complete a three-point play that made it 53-44.

Belt added a layup after a steal by Melville and Melville later hit two free throws to make it 57-44 with just more than one minute remaining.

Cal State L.A. will return to action on Saturday night with a home game against Cal State Monterey Bay beginning at 5:30 p.m.