LONGVIEW, Texas -- LeTourneau women's basketball completed a second-half 17-point comeback on Tuesday afternoon inside Solheim Arena, defeating the Manchester Spartans 57-53 and closing out 2025 in style.

This comeback win marked the first time in eight years -- to the day -- the YellowJackets would win after being down double-digits at halftime (Dec. 30, 2017, at Schreiner).

Three YellowJackets found themselves in double-figures to lead the team to victory, but it was the defensive pressure that told the story. LeTourneau (3-7) scored 26 points on 27 forced turnovers, while protecting the ball on their end with only seven turnovers.

Mariana Espinosa led the scoring column with 13 points, while also dishing out a game-high six assists, pulling down six boards, and garnering four steals. Kylie Weeks followed closely with 12 points and matched her season-best of six steals. This brings Weeks' season average to 3.6, which sits atop the SCAC. Robbi Martinez provided 10 points as well.

Breeanna Hoffman and Kaylin Cervantes played huge roles off the bench, despite not being seen in the box scores. Hoffman's defensive tenacity played a critical role in the comeback -- collecting three steals in the process -- and Cervantes recorded a +18 in the +/- column in her 18 minutes.

Manchester (7-4) came out swinging after the opening tip-off. Following a few back-and-forth buckets to begin the game, the Spartans made a tough layup to ignite a 12-0 run and break open the lead to 17-4 with 2:14 remaining in the first quarter. Martinez would swipe the ball after a Manchester rebound at the 2:13 mark and get the easy lay-in. The full-court press came through on the very next possession as well, as this time Espinosa would steal the inbound pass and let Sallie Moser cut the lead to single digits.

At the end of a low-scoring second quarter, the Spartans would go on an 8-2 run in the final 1:41 to lead 29-16 at halftime. Manchester kept this momentum going after the break, securing the first two buckets of the third quarter and extending the lead to 17.

However, it was all YellowJacket from there on out.

Espinosa immediately nailed a 3-pointer to kick off a game-changing run. Over the final 8:25 of the third quarter, LeTourneau's suffocating defense held Manchester to just four points, while scoring 16 of their own on 50% shooting from the field. This run cut the lead to just five heading into the final quarter.

The momentum didn't end there, as Hoffman and Weeks would contribute to slowly chipping away the lead, and finally, an Espinosa corner 3-pointer with 7:45 remaining gave LeTourneau its first lead of the game.

A pair of Kylie Weeks steal-and-scores would keep the YellowJackets in the lead, but following a Makenzie Covey jumper, the Spartans sunk a three to tie the game at 45-45 with 5:43 remaining.

After a couple of scoreless minutes, Covey would break the knot with a 17-footer at the 3:52 mark. Manchester would do everything it could down the stretch to regain the lead, but Weeks and Espinosa were perfect down the stretch, going 3-3 from the field and securing a big win to close out 2025.

UP NEXT

With the non-conference schedule complete, the YellowJackets quickly return to SCAC action, as LeTourneau travels to the boot on Friday, looking for revenge against the Centenary Ladies. 

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