STEPHENVILLE, Texas – A 9-0 run by Tarleton State over four minutes in the fourth quarter proved to be the difference as the Lady Buffs made just two of its final 12 shots in a 64-57 loss at Wisdom Gym Thursday evening.  With the loss, the Lady Buffs' five-game winning streak ended as they fell to 13-5 on the year and 6-3 in Lone Star Conference play.  Tarleton State improved to 7-8 and 6-3 in conference play moving into a third-place tie in the standings with the Lady Buffs.

In a back-and-forth first half with five ties and four lead changes, the Lady Buffs trailed most of the half (13:14), but outscored TSU 7-0 for the final 3:24 of the half for a 25-24 lead at intermission.  The Lady Buff defense held TSU to 0 of its last 8 over the final 4:15 of the half regaining the lead as TSU led by as many as six in the half.

WT went 11 of 29 from the field in the first half for 37.9 percent as WT entered the game third in the nation in field goal percentage at 48.7 percent.  The Lady Buffs were two of eight from range and went to the line just once in the half converting it on an old fashion three-point play from junior Madison Parker.  Senior Sasha Watson led the team with six points on three of eight from the field.  Senior Lilley Vander Zee, who had a large contingent of friends and family in the crowd, had seven rebounds in the half and six points.  Vander Zee grew up in Granbury, which is within 30 minutes of Stephenville. 

Tarleton State was led by Mackenzie Hailey, who had eight points and eight rebounds in the half and was three of eight from the field with two free throws.  TSU was ten of 35 from the field for 28.6 percent and was two of ten from beyond the arc and two of two from the line.  TSU held a slim 22-21 lead in rebounding as WT dominated the paint 12-4.   

WT now has led in the last six-straight games at halftime and 14 for the season.  The one-point advantage matches the lowest of the season as WT led at Cameron by one in a 77-64 win on Jan. 7. 

The Lady Buffs pushed the lead to four early in the third, but a combination of turnovers (5) and foul shouts for the TexAnns gave the lead back to Tarleton State with a jumper at the buzzer for a 46-38 TSU lead.   Tarleton State went three of five from the line in the quarter, while WT didn't attempt a free throw in the quarter and had just one attempt for the game through three quarters.

The teams traded buckets through the first three minutes of the final stanza as TSU held a 48-42 lead with seven minutes left.  Vander Zee earned the "and one" for just the second free throw attempt of the game for WT and a 48-44 deficit with 6:52 left. 

Following a turnover by TSU, freshman Lexy Hightower buried a triple in transition for a 50-49 TSU lead with 5:17 left and a timeout by the TexAnns.  TSU's Bailey Wipff scored two quick buckets pushing the lead to 54-49 with 4:05 left.  Following an offensive rebound by the TexAnns, TSU stretched the lead to seven at 56-49 with a put back as WT hadn't scored in the last 2:47 and missed its last five shots to that point.

A steal, and what looked like an easy bucket for Watson, saw a lot of contact, but no call as TSU turned the missed shot in to a triple at the other end by Wipff capping a 59-49 lead with 1:46 left.  Two free throws from senior Maddison Wild ended a 9-0 run, but the Lady Buffs had to begin fouling with 1:11 left to get to the five foul limit. Junior Sydney Walton stole the inbounds pass and was fouled making one of two free throws for a 59-52 score with 1:06 left. 

Watson scored inside with 43 seconds left for the first field goal made in the last seven attempts 4:35 for a 60-54 deficit.  It was her game-high 18^th point of the game.  Tarleton State called a timeout to advance the ball.  WT fouled and TSU made two free throws pushing the lead back to eight at 62-54.

Out of a timeout, Walton hit a triple for a 62-57 score with 3.9 seconds left.  Hailey buried two tosses for a 64-57 final margin.

For the game, WT shot 40.7 percent on 24 of 59.  The Lady Buffs were five of 17 from beyond the arc and a season-low four of six from the line.  Watson had a game-high 18 points on nine of 19 from the field with five rebounds.  She was the lone Lady Buff in double figures.  She moved into 15^th all-time in scoring with 1,139 points surpassing Denise Hunt (1,134) who played for the Lady Buffs from 1987-91. 

The 54 points marked the second-lowest output of the season for WT as it scored 51 in the season-opener against University of Mary (Nov. 4).  WT entered the game averaging 72.4 points per game. 

Hailey had a double-double for the TexAnns with 17 points and 12 rebounds, while Tiara Tatum added 14 points.  TSU went 24 of 57 from the field for 42.1 percent and was six of 17 from beyond the arc.  The TexAnns went 10 of 13 from the line, while leading in rebounding 37-34. 

Despite the discrepancy in rebounding, WT dominated the specialty stats, leading 28-14 in points in the paint and 24-15 in points off turnovers, but the TexAnns held a 13-9 lead in second chance points and the lack of free throws by the Lady Buffs proved costly. 

WT will look to rebound Saturday at 2 p.m. at Texas A&M-Commerce in the second of a season-long five-game road trip.  The game will be broadcast on 98.7 Jack FM with Lucas Kinsey and Kent Johnson having the call.