Women's Basketball

March 5, 2008

Tigers Fall Short at McMurry in First Round Playoff Game

Abilene, Texas - Trinity's women's basketball team came up just short of a comeback victory in the first round of the NCAA Playoffs on Wednesday, falling 67-71 at McMurry University.

Trinity (20-7) trailed 34-37 at the half, but McMurry opened the second period with a 10-0 run to take a commanding 13-point advantage that left the Tigers chasing the rest of the night. 

With just under seven minutes to play, the lead was 15 points (63-48) and McMurry looked to be on its way to an easy win.  After a 9-0 Trinity run, though, the lead was just six with four minutes left.  The Tigers finally got it a one-possession deficit in the final minute, making it 67-65 with 44 seconds left. 

After McMurry answered with a bucket with 32 seconds left, Trinity missed two shots and committed a turnover with 17 seconds left that looked to seal its fate.  McMurry missed the front end of a one-and-one after a foul, though, and Trinity was back in business with 16 seconds to play.

After the timeout, Trinity was able to get a layup with five seconds left, but this time McMurry hit a pair of free throws with four seconds on the clock to seal the win.

It was Trinity that actually took control early in the game, jumping out to a 16-4 lead in the first five minutes.  McMurry then went on a 10-2 run to cut the lead to four, and the teams stayed close for the rest of the half. 

McMurry took its first lead with 2:33 left in the period, and after a couple of free throws by Trinity, the home team then scored six unanswered points down the stretch.  Trinity was able to get a bucket with 16 seconds left before the half to make it a three-point lead at the break.

Meghan Scholbe and Krista Prato Matthews both finished with double-doubles in the game - a fitting end to the season, considering the duo combined for 22 double-doubles this season.  Scholbe finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds in the game, also adding a game-high four steals in her 40 minutes.  Prato Matthews led the team with 16 points and 11 boards, picking up a pair of steals and one block.

Rachel Snyder rounded out Trinity's double-figure scorers with 12 points, while Alexandra Blake finished with six points and a team-high five assists.  Tierney Hughes finished with seven points, hitting 1-4 three-pointers to tie the school's single-season record for threes made in a season.  Teammate Genevieve Hurlbutt also finished the year in a tie for that record.

Tarra Richardson led all scorers with 30 points for McMurry, while Maigen Sawyer added 17.  Amber Horton finished with 10 points and a game-high eight assists.

Trinity's season will end with the team's third straight postseason loss.  Coach Amie Bradley has led the team to 57 wins and two postseason appearances in her three years with the team.