SAN ANTONIO — UTSA reignited its rivalry with No. 25 UTEP on Thursday night with a 69-64 upset victory, which was program’s second-ever win over a ranked opponent.
The last time the Roadrunners (10-18, 6-12 C-USA) defeated a ranked opponent was Jan. 24, 2015, when they downed then-No. 24 Western Kentucky.
UTSA trailed for most of the night but turned up the heat halfway through the fourth quarter and went on a 12-6 run in the final four minutes of play for the win.
Sara Anastasieska went for 14 point on 5-of-9 shooting, including 3-of-3 from 3-point range. Crystal Chidomere added 12 and Mathilde Hergott 11.
The Roadrunners shot 47.8 percent (22-of-46) from the field and were 6-of-8 from 3-point range.
Like always, UTSA played a close game with rival UTEP and trailed closely behind for most of the first half.
The score flipped seven times in the first quarter but the 25th-ranked Miners led 16-15 after the first 10 minutes when Tamara Seda scored on a buzzer-beater.
UTSA got within two twice in the second quarter with the first occurrence happening at the 8:35 mark when Hergott sank a three-pointer. Akunna Elonu then snapped a 4:40 scoring drought for the Roadrunners and UTSA eventually drew the deficit down to two with two seconds on the clock on Alexus Dukes second free throw. The Roadrunners headed to the locker room trailing 30-32.
The Roadrunners took a short-lived lead in the third quarter on a triple from Kasia Kiejdrowska, 34-33, but UTEP (25-3, 16-2 C-USA) regained its lead that last until midway through the fourth.
UTSA now will await the remainder of league games to be played on Saturday and the final seedings for next week's Conference USA Tournament to be determined. The Roadrunners will play on the opening day on Tuesday, March 8.