The frigid cold temperatures in Pullman ultimately did not affect either of the California schools this weekend when they played the Washington State women’s basketball team. The Cougars were unable to capitalize on yet another game, which could have increased their hopes of being in the NCAA Tournament.

The Cougars battled to the finish against No. 3 ranked Stanford Friday night in Beasley Coliseum. The Cougars had victory in sight throughout the game, tying and surpassing the Cardinal in points, but they fell short 77-69. The loss marked the 56th consecutive win for Stanford (23-2, 11-0) against the Cougars.

“I think people know (we can compete). If they don’t, I think they’re going to continue to hear from us,” Head Coach June Daugherty said after the game.

Sophomore guard Lia Galdeira made her presence known against Stanford, especially in the second half when she scored 17 of her 21 points of the night. She also had five rebounds, two assists, two steals, and a turnover. Junior guard Tia Presley followed with 20 points and a steal.

“You have to stay confident, and you have to keep shooting and playing hard, and that’s exactly what I tried to do,” Presley said.

Senior forward Sage Romberg scored 12 points against the Cardinal, and she recorded two blocks, two turnovers, and an assist.

“I think we all have a good understanding that the game is going to be (about) runs,” Romberg said. “It’s important to just stay poised throughout the runs and hit the shots that we need.”

The free throw numbers made the difference in the game between a victory and a loss. The Cardinal shot 81 percent from the free throw line while Washington State made only 50 percent of their attempts.

Presley said part of the Cougars’ game plan was to attack the paint. WSU scored 24 points in the paint, but Stanford led with 34 points. Stanford also led in bench points 24-7.

After the game, emotions were positive from the coach and players. They focused on what they can take away from the night and what they can build on.

“Obviously if we had made a few free throws the second half I think it would have been a different outcome, but the team played the game plan to a ’T,’” Daugherty said. “I’m proud of them for that.”

Washington State (12-12, 6-6) came up short against California (16-7, 8-4) on Sunday. The Cougars were unable to get shots to fall in the second half and fell to the Golden Bears, 87-70.

With roughly 10 minutes left in regulation sophomore forward Mariah Cooks made both of her free throws that gave WSU the lead, 57-56. However, that was the last time the Cougars would see a lead. The California Golden Bears answered with a scoring frenzy that led to a 19-0 run.

“I thought we had a very tough second half, Cal did a great job of isolating triangle with their tremendous size and athleticism,” Head Coach June Daugherty said after the game. “With our foul trouble and being a little bit limited with Potter being out, made for a tough go for us.”

The way the game was officiated turned out to be a storyline. In the span of the 40-minute game, 45 personal fouls were called. The Bears attempted 33 free throws, while the Cougars made the trip to the charity line for only 18 attempts.

Daugherty did not put the blame of the loss in the official’s hands, but mentioned they seemed inconsistent at times. She said the referees did a good job communicating with her on what they saw on the court.

The Bears were led by junior forward Reshanda Gray, who put up massive numbers in the paint, scoring 24 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Her partner in crime, junior guard Brittany Boyd, fouled out late in the game but was able to record 23 points, eight rebounds, and five assists.

“I just think we weren’t ready to play in the second half, our post were playing soft, the guards were getting beat down the middle, like no one was ready to play and that’s what killed us,” Presley said.

Washington State had a hard time grabbing rebounds and denying the ball into the post. Cal out-rebounded WSU 55-27 and scored 46 points in the paint.

“Once the second half started we were missing shots, no intensity, kind of just rallying on from there,” sophomore guard Taylor Edmondson said.

The Cougars had strong production from their bench. Senior guard Brandi Thomas scored 8 points, Cooks scored 9, and Edmondson finished off with 11 points. Presley led the entire team with 20 points.

Washington State will have a chance to end their three-game losing streak Friday when they travel to face Utah.