LONGVIEW, Texas --
Mariana Espinosa scored a career-high 11 points off the bench, but the LeTourneau women's basketball team came up short in its rivalry game with East Texas Baptist on Thursday night in a 68-48 loss inside Solheim Arena.
Espinosa totaled 11 points, four rebounds, and two assists to lead LeTourneau (5-16, 2-11 ASC).
Ganae Gaines also reached double-figure scoring as she added 10 points with six rebounds, while
Haylee Jordan contributed eight points with eight rebounds and two blocks.
LeTourneau trailed through the first quarter, but trimmed a double-digit deficit to only six at the half (33-27). The YellowJackets outscored the visiting Tigers 16-11 in the second quarter backed by an 8-for-8 effort at the free throw line in the period.Â
Free throws were key in the contest, but it was ETBU (10-11, 7-6 ASC) taking advantage of their plethora of shots at the line throughout the night. The Tigers went 16-of-21 in the first half alone at the stripe before finishing the game going 24-of-35. LeTourneau made the most of its chances as the YellowJackets connected on 15-of-16 at the line.
ETBU pulled away in the third quarter as the Tigers extended the lead into double-digits with a 9-0 run midway through the period.
Bailey Broughton tallied nine points for the YellowJackets and dished out three assists.
Allie Buchanan grabbed seven rebounds, including four on the offensive glass as LeTourneau totaled eight second-chance points.
Jayla Hall had 14 points, while Payton Hicks and Hannah Matthews had 10 points apiece for ETBU. The Tigers were limited to 33.3 percent (20-of-60) from the field and 4-of-16 behind the 3-point line.
UP NEXT
LeTourneau returns to the road on Feb. 8 at Sul Ross State (5:30 p.m.).
FOLLOW THE YELLOWJACKETS
Be sure to follow LeTourneau athletics all season long on letuathletics.com and social media at Facebook, Twitter/X and Instagram for up-to-date scores, news, and other information.
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