ABILENE - Abilene Christian women's basketball will match up with one of the Western Athletic Conference's top defensive teams when it hosts Tarleton State at Moody Coliseum at 6 p.m. Thursday. Entering at 17-10 and 6-6 in league action, the Wildcats look to rise above .500 for the first time in WAC play this season in the I-20 rivalry.
The Texans will kick off the Wildcats' final stretch of the regular season in which each of their four opponents is above them in the conference standings. Tarleton is in second place at 18-10 and a 9-4 mark in WAC play, having won seven of its last eight games.
The Wildcats and the Texans previously met on the hardwood on Jan. 23, when Tarleton came away with a 79-54 win in Stephenville.
Emma Troxell and
Meredith Mayes led ACU with 16 points apiece, while
Erin Woodson chipped in 11.
Bella Earle tallied seven rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Tarleton featured five scorers in double figures, paced by Miannah Little's 24 points on 6-of-10 shooting from three-point range.
As it looks to level the series with Tarleton, ACU finds itself on a similar hot streak with wins in four of its last five matchups. Mayes has been the Wildcats' most consistent contributor over the past month, scoring 11 points or more in each of her last nine games. After kicking off the streak with a career-high 24 points versus California Baptist, she matched that total in ACU's meeting at Utah Tech on Feb. 22.
Mayes' 14.8 points per game in conference action rank sixth in the WAC, while her 67.6% field goal percentage is the best in the league. One of the most dynamic players in the paint in WAC play, Mayes ranks fifth with 7.9 rebounds, first with 4.1 offensive rebounds, fifth with one blocked shot per game and 14th with 1.6 steals.
Earle and Troxell have been workhorses for the Wildcats, averaging 37.9 and 34.2 minutes per conference game, respectively, for first and fourth in the WAC. Earle's 13 points per game are 15th-most in the conference, with Troxell not far behind with 12.3 to rank 17th.
After averaging just 7.7 points in the three games leading up to the latest Utah Tech matchup, Troxell returned to form with a 16-point effort. Earle has totaled just 12 points in her last two appearances, but tallied a career-best five steals, a season-high eight assists and nine rebounds against the Trailblazers.
Boasting the WAC's third-ranked offense at 71.9 points per game, ACU will meet the conference's second-ranked defense in Tarleton State, allowing just 58.5 points. The Texans feature a strong veteran presence, as their eight seniors on the roster are the most in the WAC.
Those seniors are responsible for 75% of Tarleton's scoring this season, as five of its top six scorers are seniors. Faith Acker, a sophomore forward, is the exception, averaging 8.3 points at a 51.3% clip. She also leads the squad with 6.0 rebounds and 0.9 blocks per game.
Arieona Rosborough and Jakoriah Long are the Texans' two leading scorers at 12.4 and 10.1 points per game, respectively. Long is averaging 17.3 points in her last six games and is fourth in the WAC with 2.5 three-pointers per game. She set the program's Division I record with seven makes from long distance against Seattle U on Feb. 6.
Rosborough contributes 5.8 boards per game along with a team-high 3.0 assists and 1.3 steals.
Both rosters feature multiple connections from the high school ranks. ACU's
Aimee Flippen played alongside Tarleton's Grace Booth at Glen Rose High School, while the Wildcats'
Zoe Jackson teamed up with the Texans' Tyler Jackson at Allen High School.
Thursday is Mentor Day, presented by First Financial. Andy Penney and Jaden West will be calling the action on ESPN+.
