LA JOLLA -- Cal State LA's women's basketball team fell for the first time in California Collegiate Athletic Association play on Thursday night, but they didn't fall against the conference favorites without a major battle.

The Golden Eagles held leads in each of the first three quarters and stayed within striking distance until the end of a 63-57 loss to UC San Diego in RIMAC Arena. Cal State LA (7-6, 4-1 CCAA) lost for the first time in five conference games, while UC San Diego (8-3, 4-1 CCAA) pulled even with the Golden Eagles.

Mackenzie Barnes had scored 13 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead three Golden Eagles in double figures. Da'Jah Jackson had 11 points and seven rebounds, while Rikke Fabricius had 10 points and five rebounds.

UC San Diego's Joleen Yang scored a game-high 24 points and was the only Triton to reach double figures. Dalayna Sampton had nine points and nine rebounds.

Karina Moreno gave the Golden Eagles a big boost with seven points and three steals in 15 minutes, while Christine Delapina had five points and four assists.

Cal State LA shot just 36.8 percent for the game (21-of-57), while UC San Diego shot just 39.7 percent (25-of-63). The Golden Eagles were 3-of-13 from 3-point range, while the Tritons were 5-of-24. Cal State LA was 12-of-17 from the free-throw line, while UC San Diego was 8-of-10.

Cal State LA had a 40-36 rebounding edge and committed 13 turnovers to 10 for UC San Diego.

The Golden Eagles started well and scored the first five points of the game. Jackson hit a 3-pointer and Alma Serna scored in the lane to give the Golden Eagles a 5-0 lead. A basket by Rebeccah DiRegolo kept the lead at five points, 11-6, but UC San Diego scored the final five points of the quarter to tie it at 11-11.

Barnes made a basket and Moreno hit two free throws to give the Golden Eagles a 15-11 lead, but UC San Diego responded with an 8-0 run fueled by a pair of 3-pointers by Yang. UC San Diego led by as many as six points in the half before a free throw by Marina LaPuzza made it 25-20 at halftime.

A three-pointer by Delapina tied it at 27-27 early in the third period and a 3-pointer by Fabricius gave the Golden Eagles a 30-29 lead. A layup by Moreno gave the Golden Eagles a 32-31 edge, but UC San Diego went on an 11-2 run and never trailed again.

A three-point play by Fabricius and a jumper by Barnes helped the Golden Eagles close to within 45-41 by the end of the third period.

Cal State LA faced its biggest deficit at 50-41, but a 3-pointer by Barnes and two free throws by Moreno made it 54-51 with 3:30 to go. A pair of free throws by Barnes made it 56-53 with 2:50 to go and a three-point play by Jackson kept the margin at 60-57 with 48 seconds left. UC San Diego, though, scored the final three points of the game to account for the final margin.

Cal State LA will return to action on Saturday with a game at Cal State San Marcos beginning at 2 p.m.