DENTON, TEXAS – UT Tyler women's basketball put forth a valiant effort against No. 3 seed Colorado Mesa on Saturday evening and came up just four points short in a 62-58 final score.
 
It was the fourth straight season in which the Patriots made the NCAA South Central Region tournament, and it marked the third season of four that the Patriots have won at least one game in the big dance.
 
UT Tyler scored their 58 points on 37.9% shooting, and held the Mavericsk to 36.7% shooting and 62 total points. Polina Latysheva had 17 points to lead the team, and both Hayley Cumming and Mileina Sablinskaite had 11 points each.
 
Each quarter in the contest was decided by four points or fewer, with the first quarter belonging to UT Tyler after an 11-7 start. The Patriots got five different players in the scoring column, led by Leila Davis with four. On defense, they clamped the Mavericks to just 18.8% from the field and only three made baskets.
 
The Mavericks battled back in the second, shooting 40% as a team as they clawed themselves back into the contest. Mariah Neal caught fire in the period, scoring seven points by herself while adding a three pointer. That triple came with 2:01 left in the half, and Sablinskaite added a layup with 22 seconds left before Colorado Mesa knocked down a last second jumper to cut the lead to 22-21 at the half.
 
The two teams opened up the scoring in the third, starting a back and forth effort with neither side giving an edge. Sablinskaite, Latysheva, and Cumming would lead the Patriots to seven points over the first five minutes, with Cumming's triple tying the game right back up. Over the final 5:02, both teams would score 10 points each, with Davis hitting a three pointer and the Patriots adding five free throws in the final 2:23 on their way to a 39-39 tied game at the end of three.
 
Sablinskaite stayed hot, hitting a big three and a layup to begin the fourth quarter, but again Colorado Mesa answered with their own triple and layup to stay tied with 7:46 left. Latysheva hit a pair of big layups back-to-back, including one off a big steal as they raced to a four point lead with 6:54 remaining.
 
The Mavericks went on the biggest run of the game in response, outscoring the Patriots 12-3 over 3:34 to take a five point lead with three minutes left. Latysheva kept the Patriots in it, knocking down a key jumper and another big triple within 40 seconds, cutting the lead down to one with 2:05 left.
 
From there the game turned into a free throw battle, with the Mavericks making five in the final 1:17 and withstanding one final push from the Patriots to hang onto a four point win.
 
Latysheva went 8-for-15 from the field, adding three rebounds, five assists, and two steals in a huge effort. Cumming scored 11 points while adding four rebounds, four assists, one block, and one steal. Sablinskaite scored her 11 points on 5-for-9 shooting with five rebounds, one block, and two steals.
 
This was the first time in the last 20 games that an opponent was within 10 points of the Mavericks at the final buzzer.
 
The Patriots season ends at 22-11 overall, with a 16-4 record in LSC play. This was their fourth straight season making the NCAA Tournament, setting a new program record in the category. It was also the fourth straight season recording at least 20 wins, tying the program record.