LAREDO, Texas -- It wasn't easy, but the UT Tyler women's basketball team claimed its first Lone Star Conference victory Saturday, outlasting Texas A&M International on the road in an 86-79 double-overtime victory.

Senior guard Beezy Birchette scored a season-high 20 points, leading a group of five Patriots in double figures as UT Tyler forced Texas A&M International to take over half its shots from three-point range, where the Dustdevils shot just 19 percent (9-for-48) on the day.

"This win is obviously incredibly exciting for us," UT Tyler head coach Jeannette Mosher said. "The Lone Star Conference is such a challenge, and it's been a big learning experience for us, so to get the first win feels really good. We're really proud of everyone on the team and how tough they played, and for them to bounce back in double overtime is hopefully something we can use in our remaining games."

With the win, UT Tyler improved to 3-10 overall and 1-8 in Lone Star Conference play, while Texas A&M International lost its fourth straight game to fall below .500 overall and in conference play at 7-8 overall and 4-5 in the LSC.

Turning Point: Aubree Adams scored back-to-back baskets to start the second overtime, sparking UT Tyler to an 8-0 run and 77-69 lead with 2:38 left in the second overtime period. The Patriots took their largest lead of the entire game on its next possession after Kylea Johnson sank a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 9 points, 79-70 with 2:19 to play. Texas A&M International never got closer than five points, but Kelsey Crouse hit 6-of-8 free throws in the final minute to hold off the Dustdevils down the stretch.

How It Happened: Over half of Texas A&M International's shots came from beyond the three-point arc, starting with 11 of its 12 shots in the opening quarter. The Dustdevils hit back-to-back threes in the first two minutes of the game, but they didn't make another until the third quarter as UT Tyler built a 31-25 halftime lead.

Beezy Birchette and Tyreesha Blaylock led the way with 8 points each in the first half, and Blaylock sank a pair of free throws on the first possession of the third quarter to extend the lead to 8 points, 33-25. Christina Ortega ended the Dustdevils' 3-point drought with 8:55 remaining in the third quarter, and Lindsey Thorpe hit consecutive three-pointers which tied the game at 38-38 and gave TAMIU a 41-38 lead midway through the third quarter.

UT Tyler responded with a 6-0 run to regain the lead, and neither team led by more than four again through the end of regulation. The last four-point margin was a 62-58 Patriot lead after Birchette made a pair of free throws, but Texas A&M International scored its next two possessions to tie the game at 62-62. Both teams hit 1-of-2 free throws in the final 90 seconds to send the game to overtime tied at 63-63.

The Patriots only trailed once in overtime and for less than a minute, when an Ortega free throw pushed TAMIU in front, 66-65, with 3:05 left in the first overtime. Crouse and Birchette each answered with a pair of free throws, giving UT Tyler a 69-66 edge, but a Troi Lucas trey with 1:36 left in the first overtime tied the game at 69-69. Neither team scored again, sending the game to another five-minute overtime period, and UT Tyler scored the first 8 in the second overtime to take control of the game. Crouse scored 10 of her 13 points in overtime, all on free throws.

UT Tyler Standouts: Beezy Birchette registered her first 20-point game of the season, finishing with 20 points and 9 rebounds, while Tyreesha Blaylock's 18-point performance was a career-high. They were joined in double figures by three others, with Lilli Stewart scoring 15 points to go with 7 rebounds while Kylea Johnson notched 11 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 5 steals. Kelsey Crouse turned in a 13-point, 13-rebound double-double, and Aubree Adams added 8 points and 7 rebounds.

Texas A&M International Standouts: Christine Ortega recorded team-highs in points and rebounds with an 18-point, 11-rebound double-double, and Nicole Heyn and Lindsey Thorpe scored 12 points each. Patrycja Jaworska added 10 points and a game-high 9 assists.

By The Numbers: Three Patriots registered season-highs in scoring, and Tyreesha Blaylock's 18-point effort was her career-high, as well… Beezy Birchette (20 points) was three points away from her career-best at UT Tyler, and Kylea Johnson reached double figures in scoring for the first time this year with 11 points… Texas A&M International attempted 48 three-pointers, which accounted for over half of its total field goal attempts (89)… The Dustdevils made just nine of those 48 three-point attempts, finishing with a three-point percentage of .188… Overall, TAMIU shot 32 percent (28-for-89) from the field and 56 percent (14-for-25) from the free throw line… UT Tyler shot 38 percent (21-for-56) overall and 35 percent (10-for-29) from beyond the arc, although the Patriots were at 40 percent (10-for-25) through the end of regulation before misfiring on all four overtime three-point attempts… The Patriots shot 74 percent (34-for-46) from the free throw line, setting season-highs in both free throws made and attempted as well as season-high totals for rebounds (53) and steals (9)… UT Tyler recorded a 53-41 rebounding margin, its best margin (+12) of the season.

What's Next: UT Tyler returns home with its first conference victory, and the Patriots seek their first LSC win at home when they take on Oklahoma Christian (Jan. 16) and Arkansas-Fort Smith (Jan. 18) next week.

Quotable (UT Tyler head coach Jeannette Mosher): "It was a good balanced game with a variety of big contributors. We still have to take better care of the basketball, but a win like this tells you what a great defensive effort we put on today. I don't think we expected them to shoot as many three-pointers as they did, but we crammed up the middle and forced them to take some of those threes. We got them a little bit out of rhythm, and we simply fought really hard and finally made some plays."

"Sometimes when you're not winning and you're in a new league, it's tough to be confident, but it's times like those where you just have to have that confidence. We hung in there, even when it seemed like we couldn't catch a break, and win or lose that's exactly what you want to see. It's just a lot more fun when you do win."