Box Score Gunnison, Colo. - The NMHU Women's Basketball team rounded up its third straight conference victory 67-65, against the Mountaineers of Western State Colorado University, on 12/7. With the conference win the Cowgirls, led by Head Coach Tiffany Darling, improve to a 3-0 record in the RMAC and 3-4 in overall play.
The Cowgirls got off to a good start in the first half. After the initial lead change, the Cowgirls took control of the game and never looked back. They were able to extend their lead to 14 points, when
China Smith made a lay-up with 8:04 left in the half.
WSCU fought back and managed to cut the lead to just one point with 3:20 left on the clock, but the Cowgirls swung the momentum back and went on a 9-0 run in the closing minutes. When the teams exited the court for halftime, the Cowgirls took a 37-29 lead into the locker-room.
Kate Cryderman started the second-half scoring for the Cowgirls, extending their lead to 10 points. Then the Mountaineers proceeded to close the scoring gap and tied the game up 44-44, midway through the second half.
The Cowgirls managed to hold on to a slim lead until WSCU finally edged the advantage with just 5:06 remaining in the game. It was the Mountaineers turn to hold off the Cowgirls and they were doing a good job until the final minute of play.
Cowgirl
Kate Cryderman's lay-up with only 23 seconds left tied the game up 65-65. The Cowgirls regained possession when the
Alyssa Lopez grabbed the rebound from a Mountaineers' miss. The Silent Assassin drove the ball down and drew a foul with only 6 second to go. Lopez converted both free throws and when time ran out the Cowgirls had captured their third consecutive conference victory this season, 67-65.
Head Coach Tiffany Darling was pleased to escape with a win against WSCU. "You need to be tough to win RMAC games on the road," she commented. "Our kids found a way to gut it out, but the Mountaineers played really in their home opener." Coach noted that losing
China Smith to foul trouble late in the game hampered the Cowgirls efforts. "She was playing really well for us tonight, so it really hurt us."
China Smith led the Cowgirls on Friday night with her first double-double of the season. Smith scored 14 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in her 27 minutes on the court.
Alyssa Lopez led all scorers with 15 points on the night. She was a perfect 8-8 from the free-throw line, adding seven rebounds and three assists in her game high 37 minutes of playing time.
The Cowgirls' fabulous freshmen post players
Kate Cryderman and
Haley Grossman each scored nine points in the game. Grossman grabbed five rebounds, while Cryderman added three rebounds, a blocked shot, and a steal to her night's totals.
The Cowgirls will continue their conference road swing in Colorado on 12/8, when they face the rival Mavericks of Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction, Colo. The Mavericks are currently leading the RMAC with a 3-0 conference record and a perfect 7-0 in overall play. The game is set for a 5:30 p.m. tip-off time, with the Cowboys' game to follow shortly after the completion of the women's game. If you can't make it up to Grand Junction to watch the Cowgirls live, you can catch all the action by either clicking
HERE for the live stats or
HERE to view live-streaming video feed on the America One Network.
GO COWGIRLS!!!
