CHADRON, Neb. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs women's basketball team hit 6-of-7 free throws in the final two minutes to earn a key road win Friday night at Chadron State College, defeating the Eagles, 58-57.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
- Final: UCCS 58, Chadron State 57
- Records: UCCS (7-11, 6-6 RMAC) | CSC (3-15, 3-9 RMAC)
- Facility | Location: Chicoine Center | Chadron, Neb.
- All-Time Series: The Mountain Lions are 28-16 all-time against the Eagles and have won six of the last seven meetings.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- After a slow start that saw the Mountain Lions only net five points in the first quarter, UCCS roared back to outscore the Eagles in the second quarter, 18-10. CSC's Ashayla Powers scored the first points of the game two minutes after UCCS won the tip. Sydney Nilles cut into CSC's 4-0 lead when she drained a three-pointer to put the Mountain Lions on the board. Jessica Nation scooped up an offensive rebound from Rylie Ottmann's missed three-point attempt and put it back in the hoop as UCCS trailed by two points, 7-5, halfway through the first quarter. The home team ended the opening stanza on an 11-0 to run to post an 18-5 advantage through 10 minutes of action.
- Agar Farres broke over a five-minute scoring drought for the Mountain Lions to net the first points of the second quarter on a basket from downtown. She reigned in a defensive rebound that led to Emily Hovasse finding Gaia Zimbardo for a bucket, followed by another quick jumper from Zimbardo. Alexa Dominguez connected with Farres for a layup that capped off a 9-0 UCCS to bring the Mountain Lions within four of the Eagles, 18-14, with 6:42 left in the first half. Four Mountain Lions found the bottom of the net as UCCS ended the half outscoring CSC, 6-4, and a five point deficit heading into halftime, 28-23.
- Trailing by five points to start the second half, UCCS forced an Eagles turnover that led to Nation sinking a bucket from behind the arc. Nation added two more points on a layup off another CSC turnover, cutting into the Eagles, lead, 28-27. The home team would answer with an 8-0 run to extend their lead to 36-27, but the Mountain Lions battled back and answered with a 9-0 run of their own. Farres started the scoring spree with a layup before Talia DePetrillo hit a jumper. White added another offensive rebound and put it back in for two for the Mountain Lions third straight bucket. DePetrillo capped off the run with a trey to knot the game at 36-36 with 1:28 left in the third quarter. The Eagles broke the tie off a layup but the next trip down the court Breelyn Robinson lit up the net with a three-pointer to give UCCS their first lead of the night, 39-38 with 48 ticks left in the third stanza. The lead didn't last long as the Eagles Samiyah Worrell made two free throws with one second on the clock to end the third quarter with a 40-39 CSC lead.
- Both teams traded baskets in the first half of the final quarter but a layup from White gave the Mountain Lions their largest lead of the night, 50-45. With two minutes left and a 50-48 UCCS lead, White made the second of two free throws for a three-point lead. CSC answered with two free throws to bring them within one tally of UCCS, 51-50. Nation was sent to the charity stripe where she hit both attempts before pulling down an offensive board and put it back for two, boosting UCCS' lead back to five, 55-50 with :57 remining. The Eagles were able to drain a three-pointer before Farres made 3-of-4 free throws, giving UCCS a four-point lead, 57-53 and 33 seconds left on the clock. The Eagles had a chance to tie the game with four seconds left in the contest but made 1-of-2 free throws as the Mountain Lions claimed a 58-57 victory.
GAME STATISTICS
- Nation led the Mountain Lions with 12 points on 4-of-6 field goals and 3-of-4 free throws. Nation, who made her lone three-point attempts, added five rebounds, two assists and a block.
- White poured in 11 points and tallied 10 rebounds, six of which came on the offensive glass. She added three steals, a pair of dimes and two blocks.
- Farres and DePetrillo each netted 3-of-7 field goals. Farres finished the night with 11 points that included 3-of-4 free throws, as DePetrillo registered nine points, six of which came from long range. DePetrillo stole a game high four balls while White and Dominguez notched three steal each.
- The Mountain Lions finished the night making 32.3 percent from the floor (21-of-65), 35.3 percent from downtown (6-of-17), and 55.6 percent from the charity line (10-of-18).
- UCCS forced the Eagles to commit 28 turnovers while the Mountain Lions only turned the ball over 16 times and added 15 steals.
- Three Eagles were in double figures offensively with Worrell netting a game high 16 points.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- DePetrillo posted a career high nine points and four steals while Farres matched a career high 10 points and two blocked shots.
- White's 11 points and 10 rebounds marked her 10th double-double of the season. She added a career high three steals against the Eagles.
- UCCS' six made three-pointers and 17 three-point field goal attempts are the highest this season.
UP NEXT
- UCCS will return to the Front Range Saturday night to take on Colorado Christian University on Saturday at 5 p.m.
SOCIAL
Twitter - @GoMountainLions
Instagram - @gomountainlions
Facebook – Go Mountain Lions
As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 16 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
