DENTON, Texas – Competing in the NCAA South Central Regional semifinals, the No. 4 seed University of Colorado Colorado Springs women's basketball team fell to No. 1 ranked and top-seeded Texas Woman's University on their home court, 70-59, Saturday night in Denton, Texas.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
- Final Score: UCCS 59, No. 1 TWU 70
- Records: UCCS (22-11) | TWU (31-1)
- Facility | Location: Kitty Magee Arena | Denton, Texas
- All-Time Series: The Mountain Lions, who faced TWU earlier this season at home on Nov. 15 (L, 80-69) are 0-4 all-time against the Pioneers.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The No. 1 seed Texas Woman's struck first after winning the opening tip, getting a pull-up jumper from Kayla Glover and a putback by Gabby Elliott for an early 4-0 lead. Jayla Jackson-Allen answered with a pull-up jumper for the Mountain Lions before Rylie Ottmann added a driving layup to tie the game at 4-4. After a three-pointer from Averee Kleinhans briefly put the Pioneers back in front, Ayianna Johnson responded with a hook shot to trim the deficit to one, 7-6, at the 4:18 media timeout.
- Johnson continued to spark UCCS late in the quarter, knocking down a jumper and splitting a pair of free throws to give the Mountain Lions their first lead of the night, 9-8. The lead grew to 12-8 moments later when Gia Bradley grabbed an offensive rebound on a missed free throw and Amyah Moore Allen converted a traditional three-point play. Texas Woman's closed the period strong with a pair of three-pointers to take a narrow 15-14 lead after one quarter.
- Julie Kasonga opened the second quarter with a layup for TWU, but UCCS answered quickly as Jackson-Allen found Moore Allen for a fastbreak layup. Moore Allen added another highlight moments later, intercepting a pass and racing coast-to-coast for two points. The Pioneers, however, stayed hot from beyond the arc, with Jada Celsur draining a three-pointer to push the lead to 25-20.
- Both teams traded baskets midway through the quarter before Texas Woman's knocked down its sixth three-pointer of the half to extend the lead to 30-24. After the media timeout, the Pioneers added two free throws following an offensive rebound to make it 32-24 with under four minutes remaining. Moore Allen continued to attack the rim down the stretch, but TWU carried a 36-28 advantage into halftime.
- Texas Woman's opened the second half on an 11-4 run, capped by another three-pointer from Celsur to build separation. Johnson responded with four straight points in the paint for UCCS, but a pull-up jumper from Madi Lumsden pushed the Pioneer lead to 54-36 late in the third quarter.
- The Mountain Lions began to rally in the closing moments of the period, scoring six straight points — highlighted by a three-pointer from Jackson-Allen — to cut the deficit to 55-42 heading into the final quarter.
- Ottmann opened the fourth quarter with a layup to bring UCCS within 11 points, 55-44. Texas Woman's answered with a quick 6-0 run, but the Mountain Lions matched it with six straight points of their own, including four from Johnson. Despite trimming the deficit to 61-50, UCCS could not get closer as the Pioneers held on for a 70-59 win, ending the Mountain Lions' season in the regional semifinal.
GAME STATISTICS
- Moore Allen and Johnson each scored a team-high 19 points. Moore Allen shot 8-of-20 from the field and added six rebounds, while Johnson came off the bench to shoot 8-of-13 and grab a team-best seven rebounds.
- Jackson-Allen finished with 11 points and knocked down UCCS' lone three-pointer of the game.
- Ottmann contributed eight points, five rebounds and two assists.
- Celsur led all scorers with 19 points, shooting 7-of-11 from the floor.
- Texas Woman's was efficient offensively, shooting 50 percent from the field (10-of-19 from three-point range) and 16-of-20 from the free throw line.
BEYOND THE BOX
- The Mountain Lions are now 4-5 all-time in NCAA Tournament games.
UP NEXT
- UCCS finishes its 2025-26 season owning a 22-11 overall record.
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As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 14 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
