STEPHENVILLE, Texas – Texas A&M International University women's basketball (7-6, 4-3 LSC) fell 73-69 in Lone Star Conference action to the Tarleton Texans (9-4, 3-4 LSC) on Saturday afternoon.

In the opening 7:01 in the first quarter, Christine Ortega and Eva Langton dropped in a pair of layups that helped contribute to an early five-point advantage (16-11) in favor of TAMIU.

Mackenzie Hailey responded with a three-pointer, at the 2:49 mark, that ignited a 13-0 Tarleton run to close out the first period and give them a 24-16 lead.

In the second quarter, the Dustdevils put together five-straight points that featured a Jaden Gonzales layup and a three-point play converted by Patrycja Jaworska to pull them within five points (26-21) with 7:19 remaining.

Alexa Hoy scored six points for Tarleton to help build a 13-1 run in a span of 3:19 to give the home team a 17-point cushion (39-22) with 3:28 left in the first half. 

Nicole Heyn and Jaworska would later knock down shots from beyond the arc to bring TAMIU within a dozen (42-30) heading into the break.

The Dustdevils showed their resiliency as they outscored the Texans 21-12 in the third quarter while registering the final 10 points of the period. Three-pointers by Troi Lucas and Lindsey Thorpe, respectively, helped slash TAMIU's deficit to three (54-51) heading into the final quarter.

In the fourth quarter, Ortega finished a shot through contact and followed by knocking down a free throw to put the finishing touches on a three-point play to spark a 7-2 run for the Dustdevils to bring TAMIU within just one point (62-61) with 5:15 left showing on the game clock.   

Hailey would later knock down four-consecutive shots from the charity stripe en route to the 73-69 win. 

Ortega registered her second-career double-double including team highs of 18 points (7-of-14 FG, 4-of-4 FT) and a career-high 12 rebounds for the Dustdevils while Lucas logged 13 points (5-of-7 FG, 3-of-5 3FG). Heyn tallied 10 points and put together a game-high six steals. 

Hailey paced Tarleton and led all scorers with 21 points (6-of-8 FG, 8-of-10 FT) while compiling seven boards and four steals. Hoy chipped in with 17 points (6-of-14 FG, 5-of-6 FT) and four steals.

In the end, Texas A&M International shot 49.1 percent (27-of-55) from the field, 36.8 percent (7-of-19) from three-point range and 80 percent (8-of-10) from the free-throw line while the Texans shot 47.2 percent (25-of-53) from the floor, 9.1 percent (1-of-11) from beyond the arc and 66.7 percent (22-of-33) from the charity stripe. The Dustdevils held the advantage in rebounds (31-30) while the Texans led the way in blocks (6-0), steals (18-13) and assists (15-12).

The Dustdevils return home for a LSC matchup on Thursday, January 9 against No. 8 Texas A&M-Commerce (13-0, 7-0 LSC) at 5:30 p.m.