UTSA women’s basketball earned its first win of the season in its home opener, winning 58-55 over New Mexico State University Friday night at the Convocation Center.
The ‘Runners were led by Aysia Proctor, who made two 3-pointers to total 19 points and was named the team’s MVP of the night. Senior guard Kyra White made two 3-pointers of her own to total 13 points.
The game came down to the wire in the final minute as the ‘Runners (1-1) and Aggies (0-2) nearly tied at 56-55. 24 seconds left on the clock and White was awarded a free throw thanks to a personal foul made by Aggie forward Tylie Jones. She missed her first but made her second to add one more point, creating a two-point distance between the two teams at 57-55.
Proctor was also awarded a free throw after a personal foul from Aggie guard Loes Rozing. Proctor missed her first shot but made her second one, putting the ‘Runners ahead by three points with only three seconds left in the game. The final score was 58-55.
Despite missing her first shot, Proctor was able to center herself and refocus her priorities to make the final basket of the game.
“As coach would say, coach Carey and coach [Karen Aston], after a shot, you have to forget it. If you miss, no matter what, just forget it and try to move on,” Proctor said. “I just put my head down and thought ‘I am going to make the next one.’”
Other top scorers of the evening included forward Maya Linton with nine points, along with forward Elyssa Coleman and guard Sidney Love with seven points each.
Similar to that of their scrimmage against St. Mary’s, the Roadrunners displayed a largely physical defensive effort thanks to freshman forward Idara Udo and her shot blocking capability.
“She is fearless out there,” White said of her new teammate. “She wants to be in the line so if somebody is coming her way, I guarantee it is going to either get blocked or she is going make them not want to come back out there.”
As for star player Jordyn Jenkins, a major starter last season, she has yet to make her season debut.
“She is recovering,” Aston said. “She is just day to day right now, we do not really know. I mean, there is no question that we are not going to rush her back. We are going to make sure she is really good to go before we put her out there.”
The Roadrunners will play Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Dugan Wellness Center.
