- Box Score

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – Tarleton (2-4) was colder than the Colorado weather Friday night in its first game of the Clarion Inn Thanksgiving Classic, falling to tournament-host Colorado Mesa (1-2) 67-54.
 
The TexAnns opened the game by missing their first five shots from the floor before an offensive put-back by Shanae Lowrance got Tarleton on the board at 17:16.
 
CMU built its lead to 18-5 at 11:45 before freshman Lindsey Mann drained back-to-back 3-balls to cut into the Maverick lead.
 
After the Mann 3-pointers, the TexAnns missed their next six shots from the floor allowing CMU to retake a double-figure lead.
 
The Mavericks built their lead to as many as 16 before Morgan Stehling hit a layup just before halftime to make it a 14-point game at the break.
 
After the break, CMU hit two straight jumpers and eventually built their lead to 21.
 
Tarleton flipped a switch on the defensive end and began full-court pressure.
 
From that point on, Tarleton started a 13-3 run capped off by a 3-pointer from Morgan Stehling to make the score 47-36 with 11 minutes left.
 
After keeping the deficit at 11 for the next five minutes, CMU struck for a 6-0 run to extend its lead to 57-40.
 
After each team added three, the TexAnns struck for a 7-2 run that was capped by a Stehling 3-ball to force a SMU timeout with 4:31 left.
 
Colorado Mesa scored the first four out of the timeout and maintained their healthy lead over the rest of the game.
 
Tarleton managed to stay tight with the Mavericks over the second half, outscoring the Mavericks 33-32, but couldn't overcome a 14-point first-half deficit.
 
The TexAnns shot just 27 percent from the field (17-63) and 22 percent (6-17) from beyond the arc, with three of the team's six deep balls coming from Mann.
 
Stehling and Shelby Adamson led the TexAnns in scoring with 12 each, while Mann added nine off the bench. Adamson fouled out of this contest with five minutes left to play.
 
CMU had three players in double figures, but Tarleton did manage to hold the Mavericks leading scorer, Kelsey Sigl, to seven points under her season average.
 
Tarleton has one more game in the mountains – a 1 p.m. MST (2 p.m. CST) tip-off with Colorado-Colorado Springs at Brownson Arena in Grand Junction – before flying home Sunday morning.
 
A live radio broadcast of Saturday's game can be heard on KSTV 93.1 FM in Stephenville or online at TarletonSports.com.