It was a weekend full of career-highs and strong defensive play in the SF State gym as the women's basketball team battled ferociously to a win against Sonoma State on Friday, but lost against Humboldt the next day.

The victory on Friday night was the Gators' first home win of 2009, beating the Seawolves 56-37.

"It felt good to finally beat those guys," head coach Dr. Joaquin Wallace said post-game. "They've beat us seven or eight times in a row."

The Gators' defense held the Seawolves to 25.9-percent shooting for the night, with 15 field goals for 58 attempts.

Junior Donisha Tate led the Gators on both offense and defense, scoring 12 points and posting 15 rebounds -- her fourth double-double for the season.

"It was a team effort," Tate said of her performance post-game, adding that it was important to "try to get everyone involved" in the game.

"Donisha is really blossoming into a fine player," Wallace said of the young forward, while teammate Marlee Rice, a freshman, supportively referred to Tate as "a beast" on the court.

When asked about an impressive basket in which Tate fell backwards mid-shot, she smiled and said, "I thought, 'Please go in so I don't get into trouble.'"

SF State maintained the lead for the entire game, never allowing the Seawolves to come within more than four points of their lead.

The Gators fought hard the following night against Humboldt State, but fell at the end of the second half.

"They played hard," Wallace said of his team's Saturday performance, adding that "Humboldt is a very good team."

SF State's defense fought hard in the first half, holding Humboldt to 11 shots for 30 attempts.

Although the Gators trailed the Lumberjacks for most of the first half, a free throw by junior ZaLisha Oliver with 25 seconds left on the clock gave the Gators a 29-28 lead going into the locker room.

With ten score ties in the second half alone, it looked like the game could go to either team.

After the Lumberjacks broke a 61-61 tie with 7:33 remaining in the game, they were able to hold off the Gators, finishing the game with a 76-71 victory.

Despite the tough loss, many of the Gators played exceptionally well. junior Jessica Hout-Freeman tied her career-high six steals, and senior Desiree Butler tied for game-high scoring 20 points.

Gators basketball will be back at home on Friday, Feb. 13 with a match-up against Cal State LA.