STEPHENVILLE -- Tarleton State used an 8-0 run during a key stretch late in the second half Wednesday night as the TexAnns dealt ACU its second straight loss in Lone Star Conference South Division women's basketball action, 70-64, at Wisdom Gym.
The Wildcats are now 12-7 overall and 2-2 in the LSC South, while the 25th-ranked TexAnns are 16-3 and 3-1 after the win. ACU will be back in action Saturday at 2 p.m. when it hosts Midwestern State in another LSC South Division contest at Moody Coliseum.
ACU hung tough with the TexAnns throughout most of the contest, pulling to within 53-50 with 6:53 left in the game on a pair of
Jamie Meyer free throws.
But the TexAnns essentially put the game away over the ensuing three minutes, pushing their lead to 61-50 with 3:41 to play. All four Tarleton State buckets came via layups as TexAnn guards continually drove the right side of the lane for easy baskets.
Shelby Adamson, Sonya Sundberg, Morgan Stehling and Kelsey Benford each hit layups in the 8-0 spurt that lifted the TexAnns to an 11-point lead.
ACU fought back, though, using a layup by
Kelsey Darby-Holson and a 3-pointer by
Kat Kundmueller to cut the lead to 61-55 with 2:46 to play. But Sundberg and Adamson each hit layups over the next 1:31 to keep Tarleton State's lead at eight points (65-57 with 1:15 left).
The Wildcats were able to cut the lead to four points twice in the last 11 seconds of the game, but could never get closer.
ACU -- which played perhaps its worst game of the season last Saturday in a 57-52 loss at Angelo State -- was in Wednesday's game throughout, despite the 8-0 run. ACU led twice in the first half, but never could get the lead to more than two points.
Darby-Holson led the Wildcats with 17 points, while
Jamie Meyer had 16 points and
Courtney Laing 10.
Jody Meyer finished with eight points and 10 rebounds.
