RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros women's basketball team fell 71-47 to the Bowling Green Falcons on Tuesday at the South Padre Island Convention Centre as part of the third annual UTRGV South Padre Island Classic.
 
Sophomore Deborah Ogayemi and junior Halie Jones led UTRGV (6-5) with nine points each and added five rebounds each. Ogayemi recorded two steals and Jones dished out three assists. Freshman Charlotte O'Keefe reeled in a team-high eight rebounds and scored five points. 
 
Bowling Green (10-1) got 12 points from Jocelyn Tate and Nyla Hampton, and Elissa Brett added 11. Hampton recorded four steals as the Falcons forced 26 turnovers. 
 
The Falcons went on an early run to take a 9-2 lead, but junior Tiffany McGarity put an end to it with a layup out of a timeout. Good defense and strong defensive rebounding by junior Zariah Sango slowed Bowling Green down as the first quarter rolled on, but the Falcons held a 15-8 lead after the opening frame. 
 
O'Keefe, Ogayemi and Sango anchored UTRGV's effort on the boards, leading to the Vaqueros outrebounding the Falcons 24-16 after the first half. Bowling Green started the second quarter with rhythm for an 8-0 run, but UTRGV tightened up the defense. Sophomore KaCee Kyle and O'Keefe trimmed the deficit from 13 points to six points, and Ogayemi generated some momentum for the Vaqueros to close the half. But a 3-pointer and a steal by Bowling Green kept the Falcons leading 29-20 at halftime. 
 
UTRGV came out of the locker room hot. Jones delivered two great assists to junior Mele Kailahi, who promptly hit back-to-back 3-pointers to make it 31-28 early in the third quarter. The Vaqueros ran into foul trouble and the Falcons extended the lead again to 42-32. UTRGV went on a 4-0 run, but Bowling Green closed the third strong and was up 50-39 heading to the fourth quarter. 
 
The Vaqueros continued to fight despite the deficit. But they committed 26 turnovers while Bowling Green only committed nine, and the Falcons shot 75 percent from the free throw line to take advantage of foul trouble. The Falcons outscored UTRGV 21-8 in the fourth. 
 
The Vaqueros will be back in action at the UTRGV Fieldhouse Dec. 29 at 6:30 p.m. in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) opener against New Mexico State. 

Support UTRGV Women's Basketball | Become a Fan on Facebook | Follow us on Twitter | Follow us on Instagram | Follow us on YouTube