LAKE CHARLES, La. – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros women's basketball team pushed the first-place McNeese Cowgirls to the brink in a Southland Conference (SLC) battle Thursday at Townsley Law Arena before falling, 60-53, as senior forward
Charlotte O'Keefe reached 1,000 career points.
O'Keefe finished with 18 points, 18 rebounds, seven assists, two steals and one block to record her 11
th double-double. She is the only player in program history to reach 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in her career. O'Keefe, already the program record holder for career rebounds, single-season rebounds, single-game rebounds, and career blocks, is ninth in program history in career points. She is also now tied for fourth in SLC history with 33 career double-doubles.
Junior guard
Jalayah Ingram tied the program record for most free throws made in a single season as she went 1-for-2 at the line, making her 147
th free throw. Ingram finished with eight points, eight rebounds and two blocks. Freshman forward
Chazlyn Dettor scored 10 points with five rebounds and sophomore guard
Kayla Lorenz was 3-for-6 from the three-point line to contribute nine points with two assists for UTRGV (16-11, 13-5 SLC).
Tyreona Sibley led McNeese (23-4, 17-1 SLC) with 26 points and six rebounds.
Jalencia Pierre scored 16 points with eight coming at the free throw line and had five assists. The Cowgirls are ranked 16
th in the Mid Major Madness Poll and 25
th in the CollegeInsider.com Mid Major Women's Top 25.
The Vaqueros opened the game well, moving the ball with crisp passes to create open looks inside against the smaller Cowgirls. Dettor scored four quick points on layups to help the Vaqueros hold a 10-6 lead as O'Keefe and redshirt junior guard
Erin Maguire slung out assists. Defensively, UTRGV limited McNeese's scoring with good positioning and held a 12-10 lead after the first quarter.
UTRGV was called for an abundance of fouls early in the second quarter, helping McNeese jump out to the lead. The Cowgirls began the frame with an 8-0 run with all points coming from Pierre
, who made four free throws in the stretch. Turnovers were an issue as well for the Vaqueros, but they settled in nicely in the final minutes of the half. O'Keefe took over with six consecutive points, making a three late in the shot clock after an offensive rebound by junior forward
Ivy Brown and then an old-fashioned three-point play. O'Keefe added another layup and Maguire worked her way to the hoop to have the Vaqueros within 25-24 at halftime.
The third quarter was a physical and fast-paced battle. The Vaqueros shared the ball nicely and scored in a variety of ways in their best offensive quarter. Lorenz got active from deep, shooting 2-for-2 from the three-point line. O'Keefe continued to control the boards and used her incredible court vision to set up her teammates. Ingram and Dettor found success driving to the hoop.
Defensively, the Vaqueros forced some turnovers and used that pressure to go on a 6-0 run late in the frame. McNeese held a slim 46-45 lead heading to the fourth.
O'Keefe made a layup to open the final frame, giving UTRGV a brief 47-46 lead. The Cowgirls answered with an 8-1 run and led by six with four minutes to play. A three-pointer from Lorenz and a nice mid-range jumper from fellow sophomore guard
Gianna Angiolet had the Vaqueros within three with less than three minutes on the clock, but McNeese's defense locked things down to secure the win.
The Vaqueros will be back in action Saturday at 1 p.m. in a conference game at Southeastern.
