SAN ANTONIO – In a school-record triple overtime game, the Roadrunners came up short to the Panthers, 107-103, Saturday afternoon at the Convocation Center.
FIU scored first, but UTSA opened with a 10-0 run to lead 10-2 at the 6:03 mark. The Panthers scored four points, then Karrington Donald hit a 3-pointer to push the lead to seven, 13-6. For almost 2:30 minutes, FIU hit a 6-5 run to close the gap once again but the Roadrunners held onto the lead, 18-7, at the end of the quarter.
In the second, the Panthers opened with a 6-1 run to trail by four, 18-14, with 8:29 remaining. Both teams hit a scoring drought until Mikayla Woods made a 3-pointer at the 5:21 mark to lead 21-14. The Roadrunners forced five turnovers in a five minute span as they built a nine point lead (23-13). FIU then went on a 5-0 run with 3:10 remaining. In the final two minutes of the quarter, UTSA had a 9-5 run to lead 35-24 at the break.
Coming out of the locker room, the Roadrunners scored four-consecutive points before the Panthers went on a 16-3 run to close the gap and trail by two (44-42) with 3:12 remaining. FIU took the lead at the 1:53 mark and over the last two minutes, the game was tied twice and had multiple lead changes. UTSA had a 5-0 run over a 53 second span to lead 52-50, but with four seconds remaining, the Panthers scored to tie it at the buzzer.
In the fourth, the Roadrunners started with a 7-4 run to lead 59-56, but two 6-0 runs from FIU put it in the lead 71-63. With 2:48 remaining, Kyleigh McGuire made a layup and drew a foul to tie the game at 71. A free throw put UTSA back on top (72-71) and in the final two minutes, the teams battled it out and were tied at 80 end of regulation.
Through the first two overtime periods, both teams had short runs to take a lead, but it wasn't enough as the Roadrunners and the Panthers were tied at 90 after the first and 97 after the second. In the third extra period, FIU was able to get a five -point lead (106-101) with 57 seconds remaining. UTSA fought until the very end, but it wasn't enough as time ran out.
Game Notes
- Kyleigh McGuire scored a career-high 12 points
- Yuliyana Valcheva also scored a career-high 25 points
- Five Roadrunners scored in double digits: Yuliyana Valcheva, Mikayla Woods (27), Charlene Mass (15), Kyleigh McGuire and Karrington Donald (21)
- This was the first time the Roadrunners went into over since 2019 (at Texas State, Dec. 4) and the first double overtime game since 2011 (vs Nicholls, Feb. 19)
- Valcheva and McGuire posted double-doubles
-UTSA-