RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros women's basketball team was defeated 82-75 by the Seattle U Redhawks Saturday in a Western Athletic Conference (WAC) game at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
Junior
Kade Hackerott led UTRGV (6-19, 5-11 WAC) with a career-high 26 points, going 12-of-14 at the free throw line, and had three assists and two steals. Freshman
Jayda Holiman had a career-high tying 17 points with a career-high five three-pointers, shooting 83.3% from behind the arc. Junior
Tierra Trotter added 11 points with three assists and sophomore
Charlotte O'Keefe scored nine points with 13 rebounds, five assists and two blocks.
Seattle U (4-22, 4-13 WAC) saw
Mya Moore record a double-double with 25 points and 12 rebounds.
Irena Korolenko added 19 points with six assists.
Makayla Moore and
Aannah Interrante contributed 14 and 12 points, respectively.
Seattle U hit a quick-trigger three on the first possession of the game for an early 5-0 lead. UTRGV's defense tightened up and the Vaqueros were particularly solid on the defensive boards, keeping the Redhawks scoreless for nearly five minutes while going on a 6-0 run to jump on top.
The final three minutes of the first quarter were action packed, with the teams combining to hit five shots straight and swapping one-point leads. Seattle U went on another 5-0 run to create some separation at 16-12 before a free throw from freshman
Ja'Shelle Johnson trimmed the gap to 16-13 at the quarter break.
Holiman opened the second quarter with a three-pointer to tie the game at 16-16. The rest of the frame was defined by each team going on a scoring run. Seattle U tacked on six straight, expanding its lead to 22-16.
A Trotter jumper from the top of the key sparked an 8-0 scoring run for the Vaqueros as the defense kept Seattle U scoreless for four minutes. O'Keefe and Co. continued to reel in rebounds at a high frequency, leading to a turnaround jumper for the sophomore and a three-pointer from
Arianna Sturdivant to put UTRGV back on top, 24-22, after a free throw from Hackerott.
The Redhawks responded with another 6-0 run to hold a 28-24 lead with the half coming to a close. Hackerott made her third trip to the charity stripe, where she went 5-for-6 in the first half, to cut the deficit to one possession, then Holiman showed off her shiftiness to work around Seattle U's tight defense and knock down her second three-pointer. One O'Keefe free throw tied things at 30-30, but a hook shot from Interrante with two seconds on the clock put the Rdhawks on top, 32-30, at halftime.
Holiman and Trotter combined to score 11 of UTRGV's 12 quick points coming out of the break, giving the Vaqueros a 42-38 advantage. Holiman drilled a pair of three-pointers, showing off her automatic release as UTRGV pushed the pace. Trotter was electric driving to the basket and used her smooth touch to help open up a 47-40 lead.
Seattle U locked up defensively to aid a small spurt for the Redhawks, but UTRGV's offense continued to perform at a high efficiency to remain in control. Hackerott was tough dancing in the paint and Holiman tallied another three-pointer to build the lead to five. The Redhawks continued to fight back, but solid rebounding and strong baskets play in the paint from Hackerott and Sango had UTRGV holding a 58-56 edge heading to the fourth.
The Vaqueros shot 78.6 percent from the field, making 11 of 14 shots, in an impressive third quarter. They were 4-for-4 from three-point range with Holiman hitting three.
The fourth quarter was physical and fast as both teams were battling for a much-needed win. Seattle U had success driving to the basket despite active hands from Holiman and a block from O'Keefe. With the game tied at 58, Hackerott played big down low to make a layup through contact, scoring her 20
th point of the game on the and-1 free throw. But Interrante came back to hit a three in transition, and Seattle U used a 7-0 run to go up 65-61 and force a timeout.
Hackerott continued to convert her plethora of free throw trips and O'Keefe played well in the paint, but a flurry from the Redhawks gave them some cushion. A Seattle U steal turned into a breakaway layup and a 77-69 advantage with 1:31 to play.
UTRGV fought back aggressively. O'Keefe tabbed a clutch defensive rebound and hit a jumper at the top of the key on the other end, then she and Hackerott played elite defense to force a Seattle U turnover on an inbound play. Hackerott cashed in the turnover with a one-footed jumper to get within 77-73.
The Redhawks held on down the stretch, converting their free throws as UTRGV was forced to foul to save clock and making some clutch shots to secure the lead.
Up next for UTRGV is a matchup with Grand Canyon at 6:30 p.m. Thursday back at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at
GoUTRGV.com/Tickets. Current UTRGV students receive free general admission with their student ID. All fans need to follow the clear bag policy, details of which can be found at
GoUTRGV.com/ClearBag. The party starts in Schlotzsky's Vaquero Village at 5:30 p.m.
Fans unable to attend in person can watch domestically on
ESPN+ or internationally via
WAC International.
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