KINGSVILLE, Texas (December 10, 2022) – Rachel Haase came off the bench and, in less than 16 minutes of time on the floor, matched teammate Grace Foster with 21-point performances, and the 42 combined points helped Lubbock Christian University close out their first Lone Star Conference road trip with a 76-61 victory over Texas A&M-Kingsville Saturday afternoon inside The SPEC.
 
Foster set the scoring trend early, supplying LCU with seven points in the opening quarter. Foster's first bucket caboosed a 7-0 LCU run for a 7-2 lead merely four minutes into the contest. Teams traded baskets until LCU held TAMUK off the scoreboard the final 3:46 of the quarter and went on a 10-0 run to close the quarter for a 22-9 lead. Reese Schumann, 3-of-3 from the field in the quarter, opened the run with a pair of buckets in the paint. Foster, who also added six rebounds in the quarter, closed the quarter's scoring and helped LCU shoot 64.3% from the field in the quarter.
 
TAMUK cut the deficit to nine on several occasions, and was able to cut it to eight on a Brianna Pena three-pointer with 5:46 left in the half, but a 9-4 scoring advantage for LCU pushed the LCU lead to 37-24 with 1:42 left in the quarter. Pena ended up with seven points in the quarter for TAMUK, who trailed LCU 37-26 at the half. Despite one three-pointer in the first half, LCU didn't skip a beat offensively in the half, as they were 14-of-22 (63.6%) inside the arc in the half (LCU had a 22-12 scoring advantage in the paint in the half). Foster led LCU at the break with 11 points and six boards.
 
The third quarter started to have the same pace, as TAMUK cut the deficit to nine twice, but this time LCU responded with a 13-3 run for a 52-33 lead as 3:36 was left in the third quarter. Haase had the final points of the run and it was a prelude to come. Following Foster's seven-point performance in the quarter, Haase hit a three-pointer with 2:47 left in the quarter for LCU's final points in the quarter (LCU led 55-40 after three quarters in the books).
 
Haase scored LCU's final five points of the third quarter and their first 11 points in the fourth quarter. Three of her team's opening four field goals were from three-point range. Foster ended the Haase surge with a three-pointer to cap a 9-0 run (all three-pointers) and it gave LCU their largest lead of the game (24 points) 69-45 with 4:54 left in regulation. Haase closed her scoring and her 14-point fourth quarter with an old-fashioned three-point-play  with 2:59 left for a 74-52 lead. TAMUK closed the game on a 9-2 run.
 
Foster posted her fourth double-double of the season with 21 points and 14 rebounds. She was 8-of-13 from the field and 3-of-5 from long range. Haase's career-high scoring performance included an incredible 8-of-10 shooting from the floor (4-of-5 from three-point range). LCU shot a season-best 53.6% (30/56) from the field and was 7-of-15 (46.7%) from downtown. They owned a 40-30 advantage in paint scoring. Maci Maddox toyed with a triple-double despite not having any double figures in any categories, as she had nine points, nine assists and seven rebounds. The nine assists were the most by a Lady Chap since Caitlyn Cunyus posted nine against Midwestern State on Dec. 21, 2019.
 
TAMUK received a game-high 22 points from Brianna Pena, who was 10-of-14 from the field. The Javelinas were held to three points from the free-throw line, which was a season low for an LCU opponent this season (last season on Jan. 20, 2022, St. Edward's was 2-of-2 from the line). The loss put the Javelinas at 5-3 on the season and 2-2 in LSC play.  
 
LCU, improving to 7-3 overall and 3-1 in LSC play, garnered their first-ever win in Kingsville with the victory. They are now 2-1 all-time against TAMUK and each are with Michael Madrid at the helm of the Javelinas. Madrid is a former assistant of LCU head coach Steve Gomez and the meetings have been Gomez's only regular season meetings against a former assistant of his.
 
TURNING POINT
LCU's 7-0 run and quarter-closing 10-0 run in the opening quarter helped LCU control the game's tempo. While TAMUK opened the game 1-of-7 from the field and closed the quarter 0-of-5 from the field, LCU was 9-of-14 (64.3%) from the field in the quarter. LCU had a rhythm of five straight makes from the field and did not miss consecutive shots in the quarter.  
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
LCU outscored TAMUK 18-14 in the third quarter, which has been a good quarter for LCU this season. The Lady Chaps have outscored opponents 196-136 this season in the third quarter, which is their best offensive and defensive scoring quarters on the season. LCU averages a 6.0 margin in scoring against their opponents in the quarter this season.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
LCU heads to Las Vegas, Nev. for neutral site play, as they turn their attention towards the Holiday Hoops Classic at South Point Arena. The Lady Chaps open their pair of games Friday facing Georgia Southwestern State at 2:15 p.m.