LAS VEGAS, N.M. - The Cowgirls led at halftime in the first meeting with the Falcons in Odessa this season, but the home team was able to complete the second half comeback for the win on Nov. 22. New Mexico Highlands (1-3) flipped the script on Texas-Permian Basin (4-2), battling back from a 32-31 halftime deficit to claim a 70-63 win Tuesday night (Dec. 2).
It was the first win of the season for the Cowgirls and the first collegiate win for head coach
Brianna Finch.
The Falcons looked like they were building a sizeable lead before halftime, holding a 31-24 advantage with 2:41 left in the first half on a pair of Shaquiri Graham free throws. Behind 5-6 shooting from the field and an 8-10 mark from the charity stripe, Graham came off the bench to lead the team with 18 points.
However, the Cowgirls replicated what the Falcons did in Odessa right before half to take momentum into the lockeroom. A pair of jumpers by senior
Anngelina Sanchez brought Highlands within a possession at 31-28. Sanchez led the team in scoring for the second-straight game, tallying 19 points.
Graham and Cowgirls' freshman
Michelle Tapia split from the line before a huge jumpshot brought Highlands within one before intermission. The Cowgirls got the ball back on a traveling call right in front of their bench with two seconds remaining. After a tipped ball out of bounds at halfcourt, sophomore
Giulia Simioni found Tapia for a mid-range jumper to cut the deficit to 32-31 at the break.
Tapia narrowly missed the team's first double-double of the season by finishing with 10 points and nine rebounds. Senior
Claudia Meneses was nearly as close reaching double-digits in a pair of categories, finishing with eight points and 10 boards.
Highlands out-rebounded its opponents for the first time this season, 42-37. Neither team could break the 40 percent shooting mark for the night, but the Cowgirls outshot the Falcons 40 percent (10-25) to 26.3 percent (10-38) in the second half.
Tied at 39 in the second half with 13:46 remaining, senior
Katie Gannon drained a triple to give Highlands the lead for good. Up by four later in the half, a Meneses layup and a pair of free throws by junior
Brittany Brown pushed the lead to 51-43 with 7:48 left. A Graham old-fashioned three and a layup by the Falcons cut the lead back to three, but senior
Jenny Johnson hit a pair from the line and then she broke the press off of a rebound, fed senior
Eboni Jacobs, who found Tapia for an easy hoop and the only Cowgirls' fastbreak points of the night. The spurt was the catalyst to eight unanswered by Highlands. Brown split from the line and Sanchez nailed a triple on a pass from Meneses to push the lead to 59-48 with 4:19 remaining.
However, the visitors did not go away. Down 63-53 with two minutes left, Giselle Loya - who added 15 points for the Falcons - hit a pair of threes to cut the deficit to four. The Falcons then forced a turnover to get the ball back. Chelsea Rhamdeow missed a three, but she cleaned up her own miss to cut the lead to 65-63 with 54 seconds remaining. However Texas-Permian Basin missed their final four shots from the field while the Cowgirls went 3-4 from the charity stripe in the final minute to seal the win. Johnson found Tapia under the basket with four seconds left to finish the game and give Highlands the seven-point win.
The Cowgirls open up Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play Friday (Dec. 5) when they welcome Colorado Christian to the John A. Wilson Complex for a 5 p.m. tip-off.
