Nov. 7, 2004
In its opening performance of the 2004-2005 season, The University of Texas-Pan American took St. Mary's University to the buzzer to get its first victory. In exhibition play, the Lady Broncs received strong performances from their up-and-coming young team.
The Lady Broncs started off slow going scoreless in the first five minutes of play while SMU jumped out to an 11-0 lead. UTPA answered and jump-started an 11-0 run of its own to tie up the game mid-way through the first half. The Lady Broncs finally took the edge on a three-point play converted by junior guard Devin Reed (Indianapolis, IN/Crowley C.C.). The play sparked another run by UTPA scoring seven unanswered points, including back-to-back three pointers from Dominique Montague (Gilbert, AZ/Central Arizona College). Montague's two treys gave UTPA a six-point lead at 17-11 at the 9:13 mark.
The Lady Broncs were able to build on the lead and held a 10-point advantage with seven minutes to go in the first half. Reed hit another three and teammate MaHogany Daniel (Corpus Christi, TX/Mary Carroll H.S.) scored a lay-up to give the Lady Broncs the lead 34-24 going into the second half.
In the second half of action, UTPA was able to hold a double-digit lead until the 11:00 mark when SMU started a 9-0 run launched by strong shooting from Juanita Merchant and Juliette Williams. With the Rattlers within five points at the 7:13 mark, Daniel's took control scoring four consecutive points to push the lead back to nine.
SMU's Williams battled the Lady Broncs defense in the paint and scored back-to-back inside shots to get her team back even at 49 apiece with 4:15 remaining in the contest.
Freshman guard Kathy Guin, starting her first Division I game, gave her team the edge draining a shot from behind the arc to put her team up, 54-51.
"Kathy is a young player, but we feel we can put the pressure on her shoulders. She is going to really control the tempo for us as the season continues," said Head Coach DeAnn Craft.
SMU answered with a lay-up by Eva Christian to take the Rattlers within one at 54-53. With 42 seconds to play senior post player Molly Schamel (Hector, NY/Yavapai College) got a steal and dished it off to Reed for a wide open lay-up underneath. The Lady Broncs held a three-point lead with 32 seconds to go, but SMU's Chronda Reagan took an open three to even the game at 56-56. With time running down UTPA left the ball in Guin's hands to try and close out the game. She took a three from the top of the key that was off the mark, but Montague was there for the rebound and last second put-back to get the Lady Broncs the victory.
Montague ended the game with a team-high 13 points for UTPA while Daniel's grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds. SMU's Christian led all scores with 18.
"MaHogany played big for us tonight. She was tremendous on the boards and has transitioned nicely from her freshman year into her sophomore season," Craft stated. "We were able to give new player Division I minutes and a taste of what it takes to play at this level." "We were somewhat at a disadvantage because at this point, we are strictly playing man-to-man defense. If we could have thrown a zone at them, we might have been able to stop some of the individual players that got them back into the game. In the end, it came down to an extra effort and heart. I'm pleased with the performance, tonight but we still have a ways to go," Craft commented.
The Lady Broncs will be back in action on Nov. 13 at home against Texas A&M-Kingsville at 5:00 p.m.
UTPA Sports Information