LAREDO, Texas – Texas A&M International University women's basketball (8-14, 5-11 LSC) overcame a 16-point deficit to defeat the St. Edward's Hilltoppers (12-9, 8-8 LSC) 66-62 in a Lone Star Conference home decision on Thursday evening.

In the first quarter, the Dustdevils recorded the first seven points including layups by Eva Langton and Josselin Geer, respectively, that was followed by a shot from long distance by Clara Fernandez  to give them their largest lead of the game at the 7:59 mark. 

In the closing 3:58 of the opening stanza, the Hilltoppers countered as they compiled the final nine points of the quarter, including seven points by Deijah Blanks, to give St. Edward's a five-point advantage (16-11) at the end of the quarter.

In the second quarter, the Hilltoppers outscored the Dustdevils 18-7 and went on a 15-2 scoring spree in the final 5:51 of the period to build a game-high 16-point cushion, (34-16) heading into the break. 

In the third quarter, TAMIU battled back and started the quarter by putting together an 11-2 outburst in a span of 3:27 that was ignited on a three-pointer by Patrycja Jaworska and was capped off on a layup by Julynne Da Silva Sa to slice the deficit to seven (36-29) with 6:06 showing on the game clock.

The Hilltoppers would end the period with a double-digit advantage as Blanks dropped in a layup (46-36). 

The Dustdevils erupted in the final quarter for 30 points and shot 77.8 percent (7-of-9 FG) while getting 18 attempts at the free-throw line while draining 14. In the first 4:30 of the last period, TAMIU used a 12-2 run that featured back-to-back layups by Da Silva Sa and a pair of shots from the charity stripe by Nicole Heyn to knot the game at 48 apiece with 5:30 remaining in regulation. 

Later in the quarter, Jaworska found Da Silva beyond the arc on two-consecutive occasions that electrified the crowd and put the Dustdevils up by three (62-59) with 1:38 to go. 

Jaden Gonzales would put the finishing touches on the win and connected on a pair of free-throws to settle the 66-62 final.

Da Silva Sa led the Dustdevils with 19 points (8-of-12 FG, 2-of-2 3FG) and pulled down eight rebounds. Jaworska finished with 17 points (6-of-14 FG) and a game-high four assists. Fernandez tallied eight points (5-of-6 FT) and led all rebounders with a dozen. 

Blanks paced the Hilltoppers with 21 points (8-of-24 FG) and six boards while Charli Becker logged 10 points and a game-high three steals.  

In the end, Texas A&M International shot 43.1 percent (22-of-51) from the field, 29.4 percent (5-of-17) from three-point range and 77.3 percent (17-of-22) from the free-throw line while St. Edward's shot 32.4 percent (23-of-71) from the floor, 15.4 percent (4-of-26) from beyond the arc and  50 percent (12-of-24) from the charity stripe. The Dustdevils led the way in rebounds (39-31) and assists (11-10) while St. Edward's held the advantage in blocks (4-2).

TAMIU remains at home on Saturday, Feb. 8 and will host St. Mary's (10-10, 9-7 LSC) at 1 p.m.