ODESSA, Texas – Texas A&M International women's basketball had a fantastic night shooting, but it wasn't enough as it fell to UT Permian Basin 70-64.
 
The Dustdevils (14-7, 5-5 LSC) held its only lead of the contest at 3-2 with 6:23 remaining in the first quarter, after both teams sruggled to get the scoring started early.
 
The Falcons (6-17, 2-9 LSC) would use a 7-0 run to open a 9-3 lead, and finish the quarter ahead 15-11.
 
In the second quarter, TAMIU tied the score at 19-19 with 6:41 remaining, but UTPB would use a 12-1 run to take a 31-20 lead into the half.
 
The third quarter saw the Dustdevil offense begin to hit more shots, outscoring the Falcons 20-14 to trim the deficit to 45-40.
 
The fourth quarter was back-and-forth and TAMIU cut the edge to 52-50 with 6:39 remaining, but am 11-3 UTPB run reopened a 10-point lead and while the Dustdevils hit multiple threes down the stretch, they couldn't climb all the way back.
 
In the loss, TAMIU outshot the Falcons 51.2% (22-for-43) to 48.1% (26-for-54) from the floor and 48.3% (14-for-29) to 36.4% (8-for-22) from deep. However, UTPB held the rebounding edge at 30-23 and outscored the Dustdevils in the paint 28-12.
 
Sophomore Emily Sweircz was lights out on the night, scoring a career-high 28 points on 9-for-15 shooting from the floor and 7-for-12 from behind the arc to match the program record for threes in a game. Swiercz also had four steals in the game.
 
Sophomore Clara Fernandez was the other Dustdevil in double figures, scoring 11 points with three steals, while senior Eva Langton added nine points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals.
 
Freshman Evelyn Quiroz chipped in five points, six rebounds and nine assists.
 
Looking to put the defeat behind them, TAMIU now faces Angelo State on Saturday, Feb. 12. Opening tip from San Angelo, Texas is scheduled for 2 p.m.