TYLER, TEXAS – UT Tyler women's basketball fell for the first time in over two years on their home floor on Saturday afternoon as Angelo State made just enough shots to hold off a Patriots spirited comeback.
The cold shooting afternoon for the Patriots showed in the first quarter, as they combined for just 4-for-19 from the floor in the first frame on their way to trailing 19-10. However, the Patriots roared their way back in the second quarter behind a 21-13 period to pull within one at the half.
In that second quarter, the Patriots ripped off a 10-3 run over the first 2:57 of the quarter as
Gabby Elliott found her way to three quick layups and
Ella Bradley and
Montse Gutierrez added in two points each.
The Rambelles battled back with their own 7-2 run in response, but the Patriots rattled off a 9-3 run right back at Angelo State behind a balanced scoring effort from Gutierrez, Bradley,
Brooklyn Palmer, and
Meagan Mendazona to make it a 32-31 game heading into the final 20 minutes of action.
It took nearly two minutes for either side to score in the second half, but it was Angelo State that took the early control. They started the half on a 7-0 run before
Tina Machalova dropped in her first points of the night to calm the seas. The Rambelles continued their hot shooting in the period, picking up an 8-3 run to get their lead out to 11 points.
The Patriots again had the answer, as a 7-0 run spurred on from five points from Gutierrez and a steal and layup from
Frances King to cut the lead right back down to four points. A 5-0 run from the Rambelles to close out the third quarter would give them a nine point advantage heading into the last 10 minutes.
The Patriots quickly got back to work, going on a 7-1 run led by points from Machalova, Mendazona, and
Destini Whitehead to cut the lead all the way down to just three points. The Rambelles again answered with a 7-0 run, but the Patriots refused to go away, as they nailed three straight triples from
Mariah Neal, Mendazona, and Gutierrez to just four points from the Rambelles to cut the lead down to five. Seconds later,
Ella Bradley dropped in a layup and a free throw to cut the lead down to just two points with under 30 seconds remaining.
However, the Rambelles would cash in their free throw attempts down the stretch as the Patriots couldn't get the late jumper to fall and they fell by a final score of 69-62.
Montse Gutierrez led the Patriots for the second straight game in the points category, scoring 16 points on 4-for-8 shooting and 4-for-4 from the free throw line. Joining her in double figures was
Meagan Mendazona, who dropped in 14 points on 6-for-12 shooting.
Despite the loss, the results around the Lone Star Conference on Saturday mean that the Patriots will get a chance at a share of their first ever Lone Star Conference Regular Season title in program history.
That contest will be on Thursday night at 5 p.m. inside the Herrington Patriot Center, as UT Tyler will host #7 Texas Woman's in their regular season finale. If the Patriots win, they will clinch a share of the LSC Regular Season title and also take the number one seed in the LSC postseason tournament.
