SAN JOSE, Calif. - Trina Frierson's offensive rebound and lay up with 0:31 remaining propelled ninth-ranked Louisiana Tech (19-2, 11-0) to a 66-59 victory over San Jose State (8-12, 4-6) in Western Athletic Conference action at The Events Center Saturday night.

With Tech holding onto a 61-59 lead, junior guard Amber Obaze stepped to the free throw line with 0:34 remaining, but missed the front end of the one-and-one. However, Frierson, who had just been inserted back into the ball game by Tech head coach Kurt Budke, pulled down the rebound between two Spartans and promptly hit the biggest shot of the game for the Lady Techsters.

"Coach (Chris) Long yelled at me right before Amber shot the free throw to cross over," said Frierson, who scored nine points and grabbed five rebounds in 23 minutes of action. "It's something we've done since I played for him back in junior high. It depends on being quicker than the person trying to block you out, and it worked."

Tech, which was playing its fourth straight road game in 11 days, looked tired throughout the contest, but the Lady Techsters fought through the fatigue to win its 17th straight game of the year. The win by Tech was also the 14th straight regular season league victory, tying the WAC record set by San Diego State (1994-95), Colorado State (1998-99) and Louisiana Tech (2001-02).

"It definitely wasn't the best performance of the year, but it was definitely the gutsiest," Budke said. "These kids were tired; these kids were worn out from all the travel, but they refused to lose. I am so proud of this basketball team."

In addition to surviving fatigue, Tech also managed to overcome the three-point shooting exhibition put on by Spartan guards Cricket Williams and Jessica Kellogg, who combined to hit 8 of 15 for the game. Williams led San Jose State with 22 points, 14 rebounds and eight assists while Kellogg chipped in with 17 points.

"We knew it would be difficult defending Cricket," Budke said. "She is one of the top players in the conference. However, with her and Kellogg both shooting so well, it made it doubly difficult to defend them."

San Jose State led for most of the first half, building as much as a seven-point advantage before Tech finally regained the lead at 24-22 with less than three minutes remaining before the half on a pair of free throws by Cheryl Ford. The Lady Techsters took a 32-27 advantage in the halftime locker room but the Spartans hit 7 of their first 10 shots in the second half, including a trio of three-pointers by Kellogg, to keep the game tight in the second 20 minutes of action.

With Tech leading 60-59, Spartan forward Lamisha Augustine missed the front end of a one and one with 2:38 remaining, and Williams misfired on an open three-pointer with 1:39 remaining before Frierson's heroics lifted the Lady Techsters to victory.

Ford led Tech with 17 points and 14 rebounds while sophomore guard Erica Smith added 12 points. The Lady Techsters hit only 36.7 percent (22-60) of their field goals but outscored San Jose State 20-3 at the free throw line.

Tech returns to action Thursday night when the Lady Techsters host Fresno State at 7 p.m. at the Thomas Assembly Center.