STANFORD, Calif. – The UTSA women's basketball team rallied from down 15 in the fourth quarter but could not deliver the final blow as they fell to a receiving votes Stanford squad, 62-57 on Monday at Maples Pavilion.
The Roadrunners (7-2, 0-0 The American) fell to the #RV Cardinal (8-3, 0-1 ACC) despite outscoring Stanford 22-15 in the final frame. UTSA outrebounded the Atlantic Coast Conference opposition 43-37 and saw five more points off the bench and four more in the paint.
Graduate student Nina De Leon Negron recorded her 1,000th career point as she charted 12 with 10 rebounds and three assists. Redshirt senior Jordyn Jenkins tallied 14 points with five boards, while junior Sidney Love worked 14 points, including two huge three-pointers to keep UTSA within striking distance. Sophomore Idara Udo led the squad defensively with six rebounds and two blocks.
Stanford got back-to-back triples to fall to open the contest, and a Jenkins bucket halted the Cardinal run. De Leon Negron then found Udo in transition before Stanford replied with another three-pointer. A later layup put the Cardinal up 11-4, ahead of a 12-6 score line midway through the frame. De Leon Negron connected from beyond the arc to pull UTSA with three, and she sunk a layup to bring the squad within one.
The Cardinal managed to beat the buzzer, allowing them to carry a 14-11 lead into the subsequent stanza.
De Leon Negron kick-started the scoring in the second, but the Cardinal responded swiftly with a barrage of three-pointers that saw a 23-13 edge. De Leon Negron again got a shot to fall, and a freshman Taylor Ross three-pointer helped spark a 12-3 surge that sent the squads into the locker room with UTSA trailing, 26-25.
Jenkins converted an and-one to start the third, handing UTSA their first lead. Stanford then sparked an 8-0 run to regain an edge, and a Love layup stifled their streak. Two Cardinal freebies put them up 36-30 with five remaining in the period. Stanford then used a later spurt to issue a 47-33 advantage and force a Roadrunner timeout. De Leon Negron sunk a layup down the stretch for a 47-35 score entering the final frame.
The Cardinal run continued into the fourth as they buried a triple on their first possession. Sophomore Emma Lucio knocked down an elbow jumper, and Jenkins worked a second-chance bucket to put UTSA within 10. After exchanging blows, Stanford got another three-pointer to fall for a 54-31 lead. Not to be deterred, the 'Runners kept battling, with makes for Jenkins, Love, Lucio, and junior Cheyenne Rowe throughout an 11-0 run that trimmed the deficit to four. The Cardinal broke the streak for a 59-53 score line. Udo sunk a free throw, and Love knocked down a three-pointer, putting UTSA down two with 27 seconds on the clock. Stanford went one-of-two from the charity stripe for a 60-57 lead with 13 ticks remaining. After a clock issue, UTSA had 10 seconds to put a shot, but Stanford swiped the ball and sunk a transition layup at the buzzer for a 62-57 final score.
The Roadrunners will return to San Antonio as they host UT Arlington in the Convocation Center on Thursday at 4 p.m., ahead of a Saturday Battle of I-35 on the road at Texas State.
Keep up with UTSA Women's Basketball on goutsa.com and by following the program on Facebook at /UTSAWBB, X (Twitter) @UTSAWBB, and on Instagram @UTSA_WBB.
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