TAMPA, Fla. – Junior forward
Charlotte O'Keefe made her second entry into The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley's (UTRGV) women's basketball program record books as she grabbed 18 rebounds Sunday in a 57-45 loss to the South Florida (USF) Bulls at the Yuengling Center.
O'Keefe's 18 rebounds tied the fifth-most in a single game in program history. This is the second time she has recorded one of the best rebounding games in UTRGV history after tallying 21 rebounds, good for third-most in a single game, last season at Seattle U. O'Keefe also led UTRGV (1-3, 0-0 Southland Conference) with 11 points to notch her first double-double of the season.
Graduate student
Kade Hackerott added nine points and sophomore guard
Madison Huhn scored a season-high seven for the Vaqueros.
South Florida (3-2, 0-0 American) was led offensively by
Sammie Puisis and
Ines Piper who scored 17 and 15 points, respectively.
The Bulls took advantage of UTRGV's first-quarter struggles to take control of the game with a 26-12 lead. After an early 5-0 scoring run, the Vaqueros committed eight turnovers leading to 14 points for USF as the Bulls shot 73% from the field. UTRGV closed the quarter with some momentum as freshman guard
Elizabeth Romer drilled a quick-release three-pointer and Hackerott used a strong drive to the basket to cut into the gap.
UTRGV's defense slowed the Bulls in the second quarter, only allowing two points through the first five minutes of the frame. The Vaqueros also forced the Bulls into foul trouble and took advantage of frequent trips to the free throw line to outscore the home team 8-6 in the quarter. Huhn hit a breakaway three-pointer after a defensive rebound by sophomore guard
Ja'Shelle Johnson to get within nine, but the Vaqueros trailed 32-20 at half.
The Vaqueros opened the third quarter on a 6-0 run and trimmed the deficit to 32-26 after freshman guard
Gianna Angiolet grabbed a defensive rebound and cashed it in with a deep pull-up three-pointer. O'Keefe continued to power UTRGV and scored four points in the early minutes of the second half while reeling in rebounds consistently. Puisisknocked down a pair of three-pointers for USF in the final two minutes of the frame to spark a run that had the Bulls leading 51-35 going to the fourth quarter.
The fourth quarter was fairly quiet offensively for both teams, but UTRGV did outscore the Bulls 10-6 and scored the final seven points of the game. The deficit was too much to overcome, however, as the 25 turnovers committed by the Vaqueros led to 28 points to help South Florida take the victory.
The Vaqueros will play their home opener Saturday at 2 p.m. against Arlington Baptist at the UTRGV Fieldhouse. After playing their first four on the road, the Vaqueros will play their next eight at the UTRGV Fieldhouse. Tickets can be purchased at
UTRGVTickets.com. A clear bag policy is in place for all fans at UTRGV facilities.
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