DENTON, Texas – The UTSA women's basketball team came up just shy to North Texas 53-51 in a battle at The Super Pit Thursday evening.
The Roadrunners outscored the Mean Green in the second and third quarters, but couldn't overcome a late run.
North Texas scored four consecutive points to start the game until Yuliyana Valcheva made a layup to put UTSA on the board. Both teams then hit a 3-pointer as the Mean Green led 7-5 before going on a 4-0 run to push the lead to six (11-5) with 7:08 remaining. Chantel Govan made a layup to close the gap to four until North Texas went on a 10-1 run to lead 21-8. A last minute layup from Queen Ulabo brought the Roadrunners within 11 (21-10) at the buzzer.
UTSA gained momentum in the second hitting multiple short scoring runs to outscore the Mean Green 12-5 and bridge the gap to four (26-22) with 2:49 remaining. North Texas came back and went on a 6-0 run to push the lead back to 10 (32-22) but Charlene Mass scored five consecutive points, including a buzzer beater 3-pointer as the Roadrunners trailed 32-27 at the half.
Coming out of the locker room, UTSA's momentum continued as it opened with an 8-2 run to trail by one, 36-35, with 3:12 remaining. Jadyn Pimentel made a layup at the 2:22 mark and drew a foul to take the lead, 38-36. North Texas scored four points to regain the lead, 40-38, until a layup from Charlene Mass tied the game 40-40 at the end of the third.
The Roadrunners scored back-to-back shots to lead 44-40 in the start of the fourth. The Mean Green bridged the gap to two (44-42) with 7:04 on the clock, but UTSA hit a 7-2 run to extend the lead to seven (51-44). North Texas went on a scoring surge to finish the game on a 9-0 run and clinch the win by two.
UTSA returns to action on Saturday at Rice to wrap up the regular season.
Notes
- UTSA is now 6-21 overall and 3-13 in conference
- Starters: Elyssa Coleman, Jadyn Pimentel, Yuliyana Valcheva, Lapraisjah Johnson, Chantel Govan
- Two Roadrunners scored in double digits, Jadyn Pimentel (10) and Charlene Mass (11)
- Queen Ulabo led the team in rebounds with seven
-UTSA-