The NMHU Cowgirls lost a tough home game against Adams State 77-60 ending their four game win streak. The Cowgirls were outplayed by a veteran Grizzlies squad led by Las Vegas native Vera Jo Bustos. With their loss the Cowgirls, led by Head Coach Tiffany Darling, fall to a 6-10 record in the RMAC and 10-13 in overall play.
Briana Gholston was the Cowgirls leading scorer in the game with 18 points. Gholston shot 4-7 from the field and made nine of her 13 attempts from the free throw line. She also added four steals, two assists and a rebound in 29 minutes on the court. Cowgirl
China Smith had another impressive game hustling to her fifth double-double of the season. Smith scored 16 points and grabbed 12 boards to reach the double-double figure in 39 minutes of play.
Domonique Rivera rounded out the Cowgirl's top scorers adding 12 points, three rebounds and one assist to the effort.
Adams State Senior Vera Jo Bustos, a West Las Vegas High School graduate, was the top scorer on the night with 27 points. Bustos, fifth in scoring in the RMAC, caused trouble for the Cowgirls all night. Coach Darling commented on Bustos' play saying “It's easy to see why Vera Jo was voted the RMAC Pre-Season Player of the Year. She came in ready to play in her last collegiate appearance in Las Vegas and we couldn't stop her.”
The Cowgirls kept the game close for much of the first half before Adams State was able to open a seven point gap with 3:20 left in the half. The Grizzlies extended their lead to nine going into the locker room.
The Cowgirls scored first after the break when
Domonique Rivera hit a jump shot but the Grizzlies took the momentum scoring seven unanswered points to extend the lead to 14. The Cowgirls were never able to recover as Bustos scored 20 of her 27 points in the second half to keep the game out of reach. Coach Darling was disappointed with her team's performance in the contest. “We were out-worked, out-executed and outplayed. The team didn't have a good week of practice and it showed. We'll see how the girls respond against a tough opponent in our next game against Fort Lewis,” she said. With the loss the Cowgirls drop to ninth place in the RMAC standings and need a win to keep their post-season hopes alive.
The NMHU women's basketball team will continue conference action tomorrow 2/5 in a RMAC contest against 2nd place Fort Lewis College. The Skyhawks will visit John A. Wilson Complex in Las Vegas ranked fourth in NCAA DII Women's Basketball boasting a 14-1 conference record and 18-1 in overall play. Come out and support the Cowgirls, tip off for the game is set for 6pm. If you can't make it to the game to watch your Cowgirls in action, you can watch them LIVE on the America One Network. Click
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GO COWGIRLS!!!
