- Box Score
STEPHENVILLE – The Tarleton women's basketball team escaped with a 75-66 double overtime victory over West Texas A&M Wednesday night to remain undefeated in the LSC South.
With the win, the No. 19 TexAnns (20-2, 10-0 LSC) clinched a spot in the Lone Star Conference tournament and at least a share of the South Division title. It marks Tarleton's first LSC South title in school history. It was also their first season sweep of the Lady Buffs since 2002.
The TexAnns got on the board first when Kelsey Benford scored a contested basket in the paint. That set the tone for Tarleton in the first half, who scored 14 of their 18 points in the paint.
The lead did not last long however as the Lady Buffs responded with a basket of their own. For the majority of the first 20 minutes, any time the TexAnns scored, West Texas A&M would answer with a field goal to keep the game tight.
After a 5:54 scoring drought by Tarleton, the TexAnns found themselves behind 9-6. The inability to score really put a hamper on Tarleton's options offensively as they shot just 29.6 percent in the first half.
From the 13:40 mark on, it was the host TexAnns that were playing catch up, doing anything they could to just stay within a few points of the Lady Buffs.
Tarleton was unable to stop the Lady Buffs' Jamie Simmons, who scored 14 points in the first half and went 6-of-8 from the free throw line. To add insult to injury, the TexAnns' had three post players get into foul trouble, once again limiting Tarleton's options offensively.
WTAMU went into the half with a 26-18 lead over the TexAnns, thanks to Simmons' 14 points and six rebounds.
Tarleton was led in the first half by Sonya Sundberg and Kelsey Benford who both contributed six points, while Shelby Adamson added three rebounds and three assists.
As a team, the TexAnns shot just 29.6 percent from the field, while allowing the Lady Buffs to shoot 36.8 percent from the floor. Tarleton also went 1-of-5 from the line and 1-of-4 from behind the arc. WTAMU committed 15 turnovers, but out-rebounded the TexAnns 18-12.
At the start of the second half, the Lady Buffs jumped out to a 12-point lead by the 16:22 mark, scoring six unanswered points before a pair of free throws by Adamson finally got Tarleton back to within 10 points.
Simmons continued to punish the TexAnns underneath as multiple Tarleton post players had to be rotated due to foul trouble. TexAnn seniors Benford and Brittnie Haley were helped by sophomore Tomika Lynce and freshman Kiara Wright in guarding Simmons.
The TexAnns remained at a dangerous deficit as time ticked off the clock. Any time Tarleton was able to cut the lead to single digits, WTAMU would go on another run to extend their advantage again.
Tarleton was able to get the lead down to just four with 5:15 remaining in the second half thanks to an 8-0 run by the TexAnns, sparked by four Adamson free throws.
It was at that point that Tarleton felt they were back in the game as they continued to claw away at the deficit.
As the clock ran under 2:12, the TexAnns still found themselves down six. That's when a three by Morgan Stehling cut the lead in half, before free throws by Benford and Adamson put Tarleton down one. Adamson followed up with a lay-up at the 0:41 mark, tying the game at 54-54.
The Lady Buffs turned the ball over with 18 seconds remaining, but Tarleton was unable to capitalize with a missed shot at the buzzer. That means that the two teams who were separated by 21-points earlier this season, would go into their first overtime games of the season.
In the first overtime, the TexAnns and Lady Buffs limited each other's chances on offense, with both teams putting up just six points each. With 11 seconds left, Sundberg hit a pair of clutch free throws to put Tarleton up three, but WTAMU's Aly Sherman hit a last-second prayer from deep, tying the game at 60-60 and forcing yet another overtime.
The second overtime was unlike any of the other parts of the game with Tarleton storming out to a commanding lead behind an energetic home crowd. Layups by Stehling and Adamson put the TexAnns up early and they never took their foot off the gas.
The TexAnns extended their lead to as high as nine points, which is where they finished the game. Tarleton hit their free throws down the stretch to limp away with a 75-66 victory.
Improving their record to 20-2 overall and 10-0 in the LSC South, the TexAnns earned the right to play in the LSC tournament with a hard-fought win.
In the game, Tarleton shot 39.3 percent from the floor while allowing WTAMU to shoot 37.7 percent. The difference in the game was the TexAnns ability to convert from the charity stripe, hitting 25 of their 38 attempts. The Lady Buffs shot an abysmal 18.2 percent from behind the arc and 60 percent from the free throw line.
Adamson led Tarleton with 19 points, 13 of which came from the charity stripe. She also led the team with six rebounds and five assists. Stehling added 16 points, while Benford added 11 points and six boards. Sundberg was clutch down the stretch, hitting a number of big shots and tough free throws to finish with 15 points. She also recorded three assists and four steals. Kiara Wright had four steals and five rebounds as well.
The TexAnns were out-rebounded by the Lady Buffs 43-31, but forced WTAMU to commit 29 turnovers in the game.
The Lady Buffs' Jamie Simmons finished the game with a career and LSC season high 38 points on 12-of-24 shooting. She also hit 14 free throws and grabbed 12 rebounds for WTAMU, while Ashley Leven chipped in 11 points and 12 boards.
The game marked only the third double overtime game in the conference this year.
Head coach Ronnie Hearne discussed his team's effort after the game.
“I am really proud of our girls tonight,” said Hearne. “They never put the heads down and hung with it. They wanted it so bad and I am glad we were able to get the win.”
Hearne credited his bench players for their part in the win as well.
“I though Tomika (Lynce), Kiara (Wright), and Morgan (Stehling) really played well for us off the bench,” Hearne said. “Those three stepped up and took over the game after our seniors (Benford and Haley) got into some foul trouble.”
The TexAnns return to action Feb. 19 at A&M-Kingsville. Tarleton will look to win their 11th straight and their 11th LSC South game against the Javelinas.
