STEPHENVILLE – Tarleton held a two-point lead after the first half but surrendered 42 second-half points as the TexAnns fell 69-53 to St. Mary's Saturday night in Wisdom Gym.
 
After battling the Rattlers in the opening quarter and heading into the second quarter trailing just 14-15, Ikpeaku Iwobi and Bailey WIpff took over the game as Iwobi opened the new period with first seven Tarleton points before Wipff chipped in the next five. Travanti Downes capped off a 14-4 TexAnn run with a layup of her own to put Tarleton up 28-19 with 2:21 left in the opening half.
 
The Rattlers hit a pair of three pointers right before halftime, but the TexAnns still went into halftime holding on to a 29-27 lead.
 
In the opening half, Tarleton got nine points and nine rebounds from Ikpeaku Iwobi. The TexAnns also outrebounded the Rattlers 23-16 and won the turnover battle 8-9 in the opening 20 minutes of game time.
 
Out of the break, Tarleton maintained its lead over the first two minutes of the new half but a layup at the 5:50 mark of the third quarter sparked a 14-4 run for the Rattlers to put St. Mary's up 49-40 with 1:26 left in the third. Over that run, the TexAnns committed three costly turnovers that all led to Rattler points. Tarleton scored the last points of the quarter and went into the final frame trailing 49-42.
 
Layups by Morgan Ashmore and Wipff to start the fourth quarter pulled Tarleton within one possession with 8:49 left in the game, but St. Mary's answered with an 8-1 surge over the next three minutes to push its lead back to double digits at 57-47. Tarleton pulled back to single digits once more and pulled as close as six, but the Rattlers ended the game on a 16-6 run to bring the game to its final score.
 
Tarleton was outscored 42-24 in the second half. For the game, the TexAnns shot 32 percent from the floor for the game, including 28 percent in the second half. Tarleton grabbed 37 rebounds, topping the Rattlers' 36, but committed 17 turnovers that led to 12 Rattler points.
 
Iwobi led the way with her fifth double-double in seven games, going for 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Wipff and Averie Mack each totaled nine points. Raven McGrath (4), Ashmore (2), and Downes (5) rounded out the starting five with 11 total points while Catherine Okwilagwe (6), Nia Jackson (3), and Meagan O'Dell (1) rounded out the scoring off the bench for Tarleton.
 
The TexAnns (4-3) will take a week off for final exams and return to action on Monday, December 14 against Oklahoma Baptist at 5:30 p.m. in Wisdom Gym.