RAPID CITY, S.D. – The Colorado Mesa women's basketball team opened the season on Friday (Nov. 11) evening at the Division II Conference Challenge event at the South Dakota School of Mines. They faced off with an extremely difficult opponent and held their own for three quarters of the game but fell 76-63 to No. 6 West Texas A&M
The Mavericks took the lead following the first quarter of action with an 18-14 advantage over the Buffs. In the frame, Colorado Mesa shot nearly 43 percent from the field and limited West Texas A&M to just over 31 percent from the field.
Colorado Mesa jumped out to their biggest lead of the game with 8:32 to play in the half after a
Monica Brooks second chance layup to make it 21-14. Nearly three minutes later, the Buffs had it tied up a 21-21 with 5:45 to play in the half.
At the break, the two teams were tied at 32-32.
West Texas A&M outscored Colorado Mesa 44-31 in the second half for the decisive advantage. The Mavericks were within one with 7:48 to play in the game after Olivia Reed made a layin to make it 57-56 Buffs. But that was all the closer they would get.
The Buffs only real advantage in the game came on the boards where they held a 36-24 advantage on the glass.
Senior
Monica Brooks finished with a game-high 18 points on 7-for-12 shooting from the field including a perfect 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. She scored seven of her 18 in the second quarter.
The freshman duo of Olivia Reed and Jamisyn Heaton had a sparkling debut as the two combined for 25 points and 12 rebounds in their first career starts.
Kylie Kravig finished the night with eight points, four rebounds and six assists.
The Mavericks will close out the opening weekend tomorrow evening at 5:00 PM as they take on the Texas Permian Basin Falcons in the King Center. The Falcons defeated host South Dakota Mines 72-55 in each school's season opener on Friday evening.
