COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Sophomore Georgia Ohiaeri (Las Vegas, Nev.) found herself in the middle of a celebratory frenzy on Saturday at the Gallogly Events Center as her turn-around layup off the feed from classmate Kryslyn Jones (Edmond, Okla.) sent the Texas A&M-Kingsville women's basketball program home with a 59-57 nail-biting win over UC Colorado Springs in the non-conference matchup.
"We learned how to win on the road despite not playing well overall," said head coach Michael Madrid. "Our team could have folded when we got down 10 in the third but kept playing possession to possession and found a way to win.
"This trip will help us down the road. I'm proud of our fight and toughness in the second half.
The Javelinas (2-1) faced the double-digit deficit to the Mountain Lions (0-3) with seven minutes and change remaining in the third and whittled the lead down to two points heading into the fourth before Ohiaeri's heroics sent the Blue and Gold home with the decision.
It took a while before the contest got to that point as TAMUK forced a handful of ties in the first frame but trailed through the majority of the game. UCCS built up a seven-point lead with 6:47 to play in the opening quarter before the visitors forced a 12-12 tie in the final minute.
The hosts tacked on a layup from Maison White mere seconds later for a 14-12 Mountain Lion lead going into the second.
UCCS kept the Blue and Gold at arms' length through the remainder of the second, despite a late trey from junior Mia Cherry (Brock, Texas) setting the score at 26-24 in favor of the hosts with 1:24 remaining in the half. The Mountain Lions added six more points to their total before a handful of free throws from Ohiaeri and freshman Mia Rivers (College Station, Texas) cut the deficit to 32-27 heading into the locker rooms.
Sophie Abela's jumper with 7:08 in the third set the UCCS lead at its largest margin with a 39-29 advantage. A three-pointer from freshman Annelise Dominguez (El Paso, Texas) cut into the gap and another long-range shot from classmate Devon Williams (Gonzales, Texas) trimmed the cushion to 43-42 with 2:05 left in the third.
A free throw from Ellie Moore set the score at 44-42 going into the fourth while a jumper off the break from Ohiaeri tied the contest at 44-44 with 9:13 remaining in the game. Both sides traded punches with the Javelinas getting their first lead on a three-pointer from freshman Janessa Payne (Aledo, Texas) at the 7:55 mark, which was eclipsed by a jumper from Jessica Nation 13 seconds later.
Freshman Jayde Tschritter (Corpus Christi, Texas) added another trey that put the Blue and Gold up 55-54 with 2:47 left on the clock, but another bucket from UCCS courtesy of Jasmine Jeffcoat 10 seconds later wiped the gap away again.
Ohiaeri dropped in the game-tying basket with under a minute to play and the entry pass from Jones in the closing seconds saw the UC Riverside transfer sink the game-winning shot as time expired for the 59-57 final.
Ohiaeri finished with 13 points on a 6-for-8 clip from the floor as she added five rebounds, two steals and one assist. Cherry added nine points to the total, while Williams and senior Anastacia Mickens (Beaumont, Texas) each poured in seven.
The Javelinas return home next week as they host Western Oregon on Wednesday, November 24, with tipoff at 2 p.m. CT at the Steinke Physical Education Center.
Get the Official Javelina Athletics Mobile App presented by Whataburger today! Download on the App Store or Get It on Google Play to keep up with all the news, scores and updates of your favorite Javelinas
Watch your Javelinas live today on the Javelina Sports Network sponsored by Mendoza's Pharmacy. To keep up-to-date with Javelina Women's Basketball, follow the program on Facebook /JavelinaWBB or Twitter @Javelina_WBB
######
