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RIO GRANDE VALLEY\u00a0\u2013\u00a0The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Vaqueros women’s basketball team used a big second half to defeat the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (AMCC) Islanders, 58-47, Saturday in a Southland Conference (SLC) game as part of the South Texas Showdown, presented by Rally Credit Union, at the UTRGV Fieldhouse.\u00a0 Support UTRGV Women’s Basketball<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Become a Fan on Facebook<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Follow us on Twitter<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Follow us on Instagram<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Follow us on YouTube<\/a> Read Full Article
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\nJunior guard\u00a0Jalayah Ingram<\/a>\u00a0had a phenomenal game in her return, earning her fourth 20+ point game as she led UTRGV (6-8, 3-2 SLC) with 21 points and a career-high tying nine rebounds with five assists and a career-high five steals. Senior forward\u00a0Charlotte O’Keefe<\/a>\u00a0returned to the court after missing the last six games and scored nine points with six rebounds and two blocks. Freshman forward\u00a0Chazlyn Dettor<\/a>\u00a0also contributed nine points with eight rebounds.\u00a0
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\nSamora Watson\u00a0paced Corpus Christi (2-10, 1-4 SLC) with 15 points.\u00a0Asha Walker\u00a0scored eight points.\u00a0Rayna Williams\u00a0and\u00a0Marissa Shelton\u00a0both tabbed six rebounds.\u00a0
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\nThe Islanders came out hot and took a 6-2 lead before UTRGV’s defense settled in and started giving them fits. Ingram recorded a block then cashed it in for a layup after a great extra pass from redshirt junior guard\u00a0Erin Maguire<\/a>\u00a0to aid a 6-0 run which gave UTRGV its first lead at 8-6. The Islanders answered with five in a row, but UTRGV closed the quarter with a three from sophomore guard\u00a0Kayla Lorenz<\/a>\u00a0to send the game to the second tied at 11-11. The Vaqueros forced four turnovers in the opening frame to slow Corpus down after the sharp start.\u00a0
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\nUTRGV’s defensive pressure carried into the second quarter as the Vaqueros prevented the Islanders from scoring for nearly seven minutes dating back to the first. Ingram knocked down back-to-back jumpers to ignite the Vaqueros offense, and a three from sophomore guard\u00a0Gianna Angiolet<\/a>\u00a0made it a 9-0 run to start the frame to put the Vaqueros on top, 20-11.\u00a0
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\nCorpus controlled the final minutes of the first half defensively, keeping UTRGV off the board for nearly six minutes while going on a 9-0 run of its own to tie the game again at 20-20. A step-back three-pointer from\u00a0Chelsea Wooten\u00a0with two seconds on the clock sent the Islanders to the locker room with a slim 23-22 lead.\u00a0
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\nIt was UTRGV’s turn to have a strong start to a half in the third quarter. The Vaqueros got a pair of three-pointers from Angiolet and Ingram to fire up the squad, then Ingram and Dettor\u00a0drilled back-to-back jumpers to stretch UTRGV’s advantage to 35-27. Corpus responded well with a small 5-0 run, but Maguire’s facilitating and court vision lead to some tough baskets for the Vaqueros, who led, 41-35, heading to the fourth.\u00a0
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\nMaguire continued to contribute early in the fourth, recording an assist and a steal as the Vaqueros extended the lead to 47-35. Ingram made two contested jumpers to balance out a late push from Corpus, then O’Keefe banked home a three to make it 52-39, the largest lead for either team, which was enough to withstand the Islanders’ comeback attempt in the final two minutes of action.\u00a0\u00a0
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\nThe Vaqueros picked up three points toward the South Texas Showdown standings with the win, putting UTRGV in the lead with a score of 10-7 with six events scored.
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\nUTRGV will be back in action Thursday in another SLC contest at Northwestern State.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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