ABILENE - Abilene Christian women's basketball gutted out a 59-56 win over UT Arlington at Moody Coliseum on Saturday afternoon. The Wildcats improved to 9-0 at home this season while, at 3-1, registering their best start to Western Athletic Conference play since the 2021-22 campaign.
ACU looks for its third victory in a row when it heads to the West Coast to play California Baptist in Riverside, Calif. at 1 p.m. Thursday.
Erin Woodson stepped up in tying her season high with 21 points in the absence of the Wildcats' leading rebounder and second-leading scorer,
Meredith Mayes, who was out with an injury. Woodson brought down eight rebounds with two steals and knocked down each of her six free throw attempts. She nailed a pair with nine seconds remaining that made it a three-point game and sealed the victory for ACU.
The Wildcats forced 26 Lady Mav turnovers behind 12 steals, turning them into 26 points.
Natalia Chavez stepped up with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including a 4-of-8 mark from beyond the arc.
Payton Hull and
Emma Troxell tallied three steals apiece, with Troxell collecting eight rebounds, including four on the offensive glass, and a team-high four assists.
With ACU trailing 53-52 with under two minutes to play, Chavez drained a three-pointer to move the Wildcats in front. The Cochiti Pueblo, N.M. product then hit a midrange jumper with 45 seconds left to break a tie and put ACU ahead for good.
The Wildcats faced an early deficit in the first quarter as the Lady Mavs jumped to a 9-2 lead three minutes in. ACU answered with nine straight points to tip the scales in its favor at 16-12. Chavez hit her second three-pointer of the period with less than a minute remaining as the Wildcats took a 19-16 lead. Woodson paced them with eight points at a 4-of-5 clip.
Breanna Davis and Hull each reeled in a couple of steals.
Defense ruled the second quarter as UT Arlington committed 10 turnovers while hitting two of 11 shots. Troxell recorded two steals and combined with Woodson for seven boards. Woodson chipped in seven points to lead ACU in the third quarter while playing the entire 10 minutes with Troxell. The Wildcats took a 45-39 advantage into the final period.
The Lady Mavs began the fourth quarter with momentum, opening with a 7-0 run that gave them their first lead since the first quarter at 46-45 with 7:34 to go. The period featured eight lead changes as both teams exchanged blows. UT Arlington never led by more than a point as Chavez nailed each of her three field goal tries for seven points.
The Wildcats never scored more than three points at one time, but withstood a 7-of-12 shooting effort by the Lady Mavs. Woodson's free throws with nine seconds to go pushed ACU in front by three, with UT Arlington's three-point try at the buzzer falling short.
