CEDAR CITY, Utah – Southern Utah and Weber State were back and forth to the final minute before the Wildcats came out on top for a 50-48 victory.
“We had energy and we came out ready to play. It just didn't fall for us at the end,” Desiree Jackson said. “We need to keep our heads up. The important part is to keep fighting.”
Brenna Gates led the Thunderbirds with 14 points as Jackson added 12. Jackson finished with seven assists as Jessica Richardson and Marquelle Funk each totaled seven rebounds.
Carpenter led the Wildcats with 17 points as Lough added 11. Weber State shot 34.5% from the field with Southern Utah shooting 34.4%.
“The kids came to play, they executed and they cared about it and worked their tails off,” head coach Chris Boettcher said.
Gates knocked in a layup to put the game's first points on the board before Weber State took a four-point run to gain the lead. Back-to-back layups from Jackson tied the game at six. The Wildcats put up five-straight points to jump ahead before Sydnee Taylor sunk a three and Taylor Baird hit a jumper to place the Thunderbirds within two.
Taylor knocked in a contested layup to tie the game at 13. Munns connected with Gates under the basket to tack in a layup and clench a two-point advantage. The Wildcats fought back to take a three point lead before a layup from Gates cut their lead to one. Jackson drained a three to push the Thunderbirds ahead by two with just over seven minutes remaining in the opening half.
“We were executing really well, our shots just weren't falling,” Gates stated. “We're making good progress. We just need to make progress faster.”
Southern Utah trailed by two before a pair of free throws from Donna Koerber tied up the game at 23 with three minutes to play in the first half. The Wildcats took a three-point run to round out the half for a 26-23 lead.
Jackson led the Thunderbirds in the opening half with seven points as Gates and Taylor added six and five, respectively. Southern Utah outrebounded Weber State 19-17 in the opening half as Richardson, Gates and Koerber each finished with three rebounds. Jackson totaled three assists in the half as Funk tacked up two assists.
Weber State's Carlee Lough led all-scorers with 11 points as Jalen Carpenter chipped in eight. WSU shot 45.8% from the field in the first half.
Richardson put in Southern Utah's opening four points of the second half to place the T-Birds within two of the Wildcats before Jackson finished a drive to tie up the game at 29. The Wildcats took a four-point rally before Gates broke their spree with a layup. Taylor found Baird for a fast break and Jackson sunk a jumper to tie the game at 35.
The Wildcats led by five before a layup from Baird and back-to-back layups from Gates tied up the game, 43-43. WSU crept ahead by two before a sideline jumper from Taylor tied up the game at 45. The Wildcats crept ahead, once again, before a single free throw from Jackson put the Thunderbirds within one.
WSU responded with a free throw to extend its lead to two with 19.6 seconds to play. The Wildcats finished a pair of free throws to jump ahead by four before a layup from Richardson put SUU within two. The T-Birds couldn't manage to gain a lead over the Wildcats in the final seconds, resulting in a 50-48 loss.
“I think Idaho State is a better matchup for us,” Boettcher said. “We've played them before and we know what to expect. With our depth and the intensity we've been playing with, we should be able to score enough points to get a victory.”
Southern Utah will bounce back from its Weber State loss by taking on Idaho State on Saturday at 7 p.m. for a cancer awareness game in the Centrum Arena.
