RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros women's basketball team opened #RallyTheValley Week, presented by McAllen International Airport, with a resounding 75-53 Southland Conference (SLC) victory over the Lamar Cardinals Thursday in front of 1,405 fans at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.
This is UTRGV's (16-9, 13-3 SLC) seventh consecutive win, which ties the program's longest winning streak. The Vaqueros have won seven in a row once before in the 2016-17 season which resulted in the first postseason win in program history during a Women's Basketball Invitational appearance.
Junior guard
Jalayah Ingram led the Vaqueros with 14 points, nine assists and five rebounds. Four Vaqueros reached double figures in scoring, including junior forward
Ivy Brown with 12 points, senior forward
Charlotte O'Keefe with 11 points, six rebounds and four assists, and sophomore guard
Gianna Angiolet with 10 points and two steals. Freshman forward
Chazlyn Dettor had a team-high seven rebounds with nine points.
Nine different Vaqueros got in the scoresheet as UTRGV dropped the most points of any conference opponent against Lamar – a defense allowing just 58.1 points per game coming into Thursday.
Shaila Forman led Lamar (14-9, 11-5 SLC) with 15 points and two steals.
Kamryn Wilson scored 12 points. The Cardinals were averaging 63.5 points per game and UTRGV's defense held them well below that production.
UTRGV set the tone from the opening whistle and dominated the first half. The Vaqueros forced two quick turnovers and took a 15-8 lead after a three-pointer from Angiolet and a nice layup through double coverage from Brown
. UTRGV's stifling defense kept Lamar scoreless for over four minutes and the offense stayed hot to go on an 8-0 run. The Cardinals cut the deficit to five before redshirt junior guard
Erin Maguire dished out a great assist to sophomore guard
Kayla Lorenz for a layup to have UTRGV leading, 20-13, after the first quarter.
The Vaqueros went 5-for-6 from three in a big second quarter that saw the lead grow to as many as 19 points. Lorenz and Brown drilled threes on back-to-back possessions and the defense continued to force miscues from the Cardinals, causing Lamar to call an early timeout.
The Cardinals were kept off the board for over three minutes midway through the quarter as UTRGV built a 15-point lead. Angiolet and O'Keefe made threes, then Ingram showed off her dribble drive to kiss a layup off the glass to aid the 41-22 advantage. Lamar was strong in the final minutes of the half, forcing some turnovers and going on a small 4-0 run before junior guard
Madison Huhn made a three to have the Vaqueros leading, 44-26, at the break.
The third quarter was low scoring but the Vaqueros remained in control. UTRGV didn't allow the Cardinals to score from the field until there was just 2:03 remaining in the quarter. Lamar's first six points in the frame came from the free throw line while the Vaqueros found success driving to the basket after establishing the outside shot in the first half, opening up a 58-34 advantage. The Vaqueros spread the ball around to keep the Cardinals on their heels and shot 85.7% from the field while holding Lamar to 15.4% to be on top, 60-40, heading to the fourth.
The Vaqueros found seams in the usually stingy Lamar defense to put the game well out of reach in the fourth, extending the cushion to 28 points midway through the quarter. UTRGV turned to the bench and was fired up late by a three from sophomore guard
Sophia Zufelt.
Up next for the Vaqueros during
#RallyTheValley Week, presented by McAllen International Airport, is a Saturday SLC game against Stephen F. Austin at 2 p.m. at the UTRGV Fieldhouse. The men's teams from UTRGV and SFA will play at 4:30 p.m. and the Vaqueros baseball team will host Kansas at 6:30 p.m. at UTRGV Baseball Stadium.
Fans can purchase a #RallyTheValley Week Pack at
GoUTRGV.com/RallyTheValleyMiniPlan for $30 to get tickets to all seven remaining home games throughout the week. Fans can purchase single-game tickets at
UTRGVTickets.com. Current UTRGV students receive free general admission with their student ID but will need to claim a ticket at
GoUTRGV.com/StudentTickets. Fans can learn more about game day, including parking information, maps, and the clear bag policy by visiting
RallyTheValley.com.
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