Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
UA-Fort Smith women fall in double overtime
FORT SMITH — The Lone Star Conference debut for Arkansas-Fort Smith’s women lasted a minute too long.
Texas A&M-International scored seven points over the final 58.2 seconds in double overtime and ruined the Lions’ first game in their new league with a 75-72 victory Thursday night in the Stubblefield Center.
“It all hurts,” UA-Fort Smith coach Tari Cummings said. “I told them this was a team that wasn’t going to quit. If you give them a glance of hope, they are going to take it. We have to put our foot on their neck and make sure we shut down all hope.
“We didn’t close it out when we had the opportunity. This hurts, but it’s a learning opportunity for our team. We can’t feel sorry for ourselves because we have to get back in here and play a game on Saturday.”
The Lions (2-3, 0-1) led 68-67 on Paige Elston’s free throw with 3 minutes, 5 seconds left in the second overtime, and Mar’Shalia Lollie’s two free throws at the 1:16 mark made it a 70-68 game. Clara Fernandez hit the game at 70 on her bucket with 58.6 seconds left, then she hit two free throws to give Texas A&M-International (3-2, 0-1) a 72-70 lead 5 seconds later.
Josselin Geer’s bucket and a free throw by Gulten Rose Altunbulak extended the Dustdevils’ lead 7570 with 22.2 seconds left. UA-Fort Smith pulled within 75-72 on Alexsis Brown’s bucket with 4.9 seconds remaining, but any chance of tying the game ended when Hannah Boyett’s attempt from the backcourt was blocked away.
“They fought,” Cummings said. “The problem is we had 38 turnovers and went 17 of 29 from the free-throw line. If you turn the ball over and don’t make free throws, it will cost you in the end.”
The Lions appeared in control when Leiloni Culley’s bucket gave them a 49-37 lead with 8 minutes left in regulation. Texas A&M-International, however, battled back and forced overtime when Patrycja Jaworska’s free throw with 34 seconds left tied the game at 55.
The Dustdevils then had the lead for most of the first time, but Lollie’s bucket with 7.7 seconds left tied the game at 65 and forced an additional 5 minutes.
Lollie finished with a double-double with 23 points and 11 rebounds, while Elston added 15 and Boyett 10 for UA-Fort Smith, which hosts Texas A&M-Kingsville in LSC play Saturday afternoon. Jaworska led the Dustdevils with 19 points while Geer added 16 and Nicole
UA-FORT SMITH 74, TEXAS A&M-INTERNATIONAL 63
Sharpshooter Matthew Wilson of Farmington scored a season-high 34 points as UA-Fort Smith enjoyed a victorious Lone Star Conference debut.
Wilson hit eight 3-pointers, one short of the school record, and he now has the fourth-highest point total scored by a Lion player in a single game.
UA-Fort Smith (4-0, 1-0) never trailed after an 11-0 run, capped by Wilson’s second 3-pointer, gave the Lions an 17-8 lead with 12:06 left in the first half. UA-Fort Smith led 3223 at halftime, and the Lions took their biggest lead when Wilson’s sixth 3-pointer made the score 4425 with 13:42 remaining.
Brian Halums was the only other UA-Fort Smith player in double figures with 12. Dominic Jackson led Texas A&M-International (23, 0-1) with 18 points, followed by Ryan Birt with 14 and Tom Higgins with 13.