Cowgirls start strong, fall short against MSU Denver

DENVER --- The New Mexico Highlands women's basketball team started strong, but fell to MSU Denver 81-41 on the road on Saturday night.
 
The Cowgirls (4-14, 2-9) jumped out to a 19-8 advantage after the first quarter – leading the entire period as Kish Chandler opened the game with a 3-pointer. NMHU held the lead on the Roadrunners (7-10, 6-5) until MSU Denver's Abbigail Juozapaitis drained a 3-pointer at the 2:38 mark in the second to give the Roadrunners a 24-23 advantage.
 
The Cowgirls tied MSU Denver after a DeAvion Allen free throw, but the Roadrunners drained a 3-pointer at the second quarter buzzer to take a 27-24 lead into the half. It started a MSU Denver 21-0 run (18-0 to start the third quarter) as the Roadrunners cruised from there for the victory.
 
Allen led the Cowgirls with 14 points to go along with four rebounds, two assists and three steals. Allyah George had 10 points and five rebounds for NMHU as well.
 
The Cowgirls return to action next week on the road as they travel to take on Black Hills State on Friday and South Dakota School of Mines on Saturday.