STEPHENVILLE – A defensive-minded player and coach at Tarleton State University, it seems only fitting that a milestone win for head coach Misty Wilson would come in an 81-38 rout that saw the opponent shoot just 26-percent from the floor.
 
Tarleton dominated Texas A&M-Kingsville from start to finish Thursday night as the Texans beat the Javelinas 81-38 in their return to Lone Star Conference action. The win was Wilson's 100th as the head coach of her alma mater. It's her 319th overall coaching win, including 12 seasons as an assistant coach.
 
The newly-named student-athlete of the month, Kylie Collins, had the hot hand early on.
 
The senior drilled back-to-back 3-pointers on Tarleton's first two offensive possessions to spark a 12-2 run over the first four minutes. Tarleton poured it on over the rest of the opening quarter and led 28-11 after the first 10 minutes of the game.
 
The defense would kick up to another level as the Texans held Kingsville to single-digit scoring in each of the next two quarters while extending their lead to 41 after three quarters of play. The Tarleton reserves outscored the Javelinas 15-13 in the fourth quarter.
 
Tarleton held the Javelinas to a mere 26-percent shooting from the floor and forced 18 turnovers that led to 16 Tarleton points. Kingsville did not score a single point off of any of Tarleton's turnovers.
 
The Tarleton seniors led the way in the scoring department as Collins tied her career high with 14 points to lead the team while Mackenzie Hailey added 12. Tarleton got scoring from 11 other Texans in the rout, including the first points for mid-year transfer Reagan Heun (5) in her Tarleton debut.
 
Alexa Hoy (8) and Lucy Benson (6) combined for 14 points in the starting lineup while Erin Brumley (6), Jayci Morton (6), Madison Mitschke (3), Jasmine Bailey (3), Callie Boyles (5), Heun (5), Amber Strange (2), Kandyn Faurie (4), and Marissa Escamilla (7) rounded out the offense from the bench. Tarleton's bench combined for a season-high 41 points.
 
Tarleton will return home Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. to host Texas A&M International on Education Night in Wisdom Gym. All local school district employees will receive free admission with valid ID.