STEPHENVILLE – Despite a thrilling finish in the waning seconds of regulation, Tarleton couldn't maintain the momentum in the overtime period and suffered a 77-69 loss to Texas Woman's in Wisdom Gym on Saturday.
 
With just under 15 seconds left to play and Tarleton trailing 59-55, Mackenzie Hailey and Katie Webster perfectly executed a layup out of a timeout to cut the deficit to one possession. Texas Woman's did its part on the offensive end by missing a pair of free throws, including a second which went right into the high-leaping hands of Hailey.
 
The sophomore forward found Tiara Tatum with a pass and, with no timeouts available, Tatum went coast-to-coast and converted a physical layup to tie the game with 0.78 left on the clock to force an overtime period.
 
In overtime, however, the TexAnns were outscored 18-10 in the extra period and couldn't get any closer than five after the opening two minutes.
 
Texas Woman's jumped out to an early 9-4 lead over the opening five minutes of the game before a layup from McKinley Bostad got the TexAnns rolling. The Bostad layup started a 6-1 Tarleton run to tie things up at 10-10 before a three-ball from the Pioneers sent the TexAnns into the second quarter trailing 13-10.
 
Tarleton opened the second quarter with a 5-2 edge to knot the score at 15-15 before a layup from Katie Webster put the TexAnns on top at 17-15 and was the beginning of a 17-2 run over the rest of the half. That seven-minute Tarleton surge sent the purple and white into halftime with a 32-17 lead.
 
The Pioneers answered with a 20-10 run over the third quarter and ultimately brought the game back to even at 44-44 with 6:39 left in the fourth quarter. The game would be tied four more times over the final six minutes with Texas Woman's leading by as many as five leading into the final 15 seconds.
 
The majority of the Tarleton scoring came from the starting five, led by 17 points on 6-10 shooting from Tatum. Hailey added a double-double performance with 16 points and 13 rebounds while Webster and McKinley Bostad each scored 13 points.
 
Kylie Collins (5), Baylee Peck (4), and Nina Alvarez (1) rounded out the Tarleton scoring. The TexAnns shot .451 from the floor for the game.
 
Tarleton will return to action next week for the final week of the regular season. The TexAnns will host UT Permian Basin in Wisdom Gym on Thursday and No. 25 West Texas A&M on Saturday.