The Iona College women's basketball team rallied late to defeat Long Beach State University 78-73 Saturday afternoon in a matinee at the Hynes Center, improving to 4-2 on the season.

With the Gaels ahead 27-24 with 6:47 remaining, Long Beach State ended the first half on a 14-5 run, giving them a 38-32 lead heading into the locker room.

The 49ers then started the second half shooting eight-for-twelve from the field to push their lead to 55-45 with 13:23 remaining. From there, the Gaels went on an 8-0 run to get themselves back in the game, capped by a layup from senior forward Kristina Ford.

Junior guard Diana Hubbard drained her third three-pointer of the game with 5:06 remaining to give the Gaels a 65-62 lead, their first lead since the 5:47 mark of the first half.

Tied at 72 with 1:24 left, free throws by senior guard Suzi Fregosi and freshman guard Damika Martinez put the Maroon and Gold up for good.

Martinez led all scorers with 19 points and added eight rebounds. Ford recorded yet another double-double, with 18 points and 13 boards. Hubbard was a spark off the bench, scoring 15 points and had a key steal during the Gaels final run of the game.

"I am very proud of our kids and their intensity in the second half," said head coach Anthony Bozzella. "Hubbard's energy showed, especially during our press, and was the spark we needed to make a comeback against a tough Long Beach State team."

The Gaels travel to Ohio on Tuesday to take on Toledo on Thursday at 11:00 am before taking on Miami (OH) the next day at 1:30 pm

"To compete against a team like Toledo, we are going to need to rebound the basketball and not give them second possessions," said Bozzella.