Timothy David/THE RIDER
UTRGV’s Women’s Basketball Team opened its season with a 114-47 victory against Arlington Baptist University on Nov. 2 at the Fieldhouse on the Edinburg campus, setting a program record for most-points scored in a game.
The Vaqueros recorded an 81.3% free-throw percentage. Every player on the roster scored at least one point. UTRGV led the game, maintaining control against the Patriots in a wire-to-wire victory.
The 114 points marked the highest-scoring game in the program’s history. The team also recorded 29 assists and had five players finish in double digits.
Sophomore forward Rylie Whitehair led the Vaqueros with a career-high of 19 points, shooting 8-for-8 from the field. Head coach Lane Lord described her performance as “perfect all night.”
Whitehair was returning from an injury which kept her from practicing throughout the summer.
“I wasn’t really practicing.” Whitehair said. “This is finally, like, my month back. I just felt like I had a pretty good game, you know, just having that effort and time, like leaning off the court, wanting to play more, and this is where I showed out.”
Her performance marked the second time in UTRGV’s history that a player shot 100% from the field on at least eight attempts.
Timothy David/THE RIDER
Junior guard Jesslynn Jalomo and sophomore guard Kamryn McLaurin also made their UTRGV debuts, each contributing 21 points off the bench.
Both players transferred to UTRGV before the season. McLaurin previously played for Houston Christian University, where she finished second on the team in scoring and led the team with 46 steals as a freshman.
Jalomo spent two seasons at Nicholls State University, where she led her team in free-throw and 3-point shooting percentages.
Lord said he was pleased with the team’s offensive performance and the player’s ability to share the ball.
“I was real happy with our offense. Five players and double figures, and we really shared the basketball. We had 29 assists, I believe. Did a great job sharing the ball, making the extra pass. You know, it was fun to have everybody on the team score. Everybody contributed,” he said.
Graduate student guard Erin Maguire contributed 6 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists in 18 minutes of playtime.
Sophomore forward Elise Horne recorded 3 defensive rebounds and 1 assist without committing a foul. She also closed off the first half with a buzzer-beating layup, sending the Vaqueros into halftime with a 66-15 lead.
The win comes after UTRGV finished the previous season with the winningest record in the program history.
Following the season opener, the team is scheduled to play two road games, facing Kansas University Friday and South Dakota Sunday. They will return home to the UTRGV Fieldhouse on Wednesday.
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