by LAS VEGAS – Abilene Christian women’s basketball flipped a 15-point deficit into a one-point lead over the course of 12 minutes in the second half, but the Wildcats’ only lead of their game vs. Radford (5-4) was short lived as Claudia Quevedo’s 3-pointer on the Highlander’s ensuing possession sent them to a 71-65 victory Thursday during the first day of action at the Las Vegas Holiday Hoops Classic.
The loss snapped a two-game winning streak for the Wildcats, dropping their record to 5-4 and keeping head coach Julie Goodenough at 399 career victories.
Quevedo was a thorn in the side all game for the Wildcats’ defense as she finished the game with 15 points on 5-of-6 shooting. She also made all four of her 3-point tries, three of which came during the Highlanders’ 25-point third quarter.
Destinee Walker totaled 19 bench points and Lydia Rivers posted a 18-point / 10-rebound double-double for Radford, which shot 49 percent from the field (25-51).
ACU was outscored 16-8 in the first quarter but entered the break only down five points (33-28) against the defending Big South Champions with Dominique Golightly (Kiowa Tribe) leading the way with nine points and 10 rebounds. The sophomore guard would finish with a double-double, scoring a team-high 20 points with 14 rebounds (seven off the defensive glass).
The Highlanders soon began to bolster their advantage early in the third quarter. Quevedo hit the first of her four triples 41 seconds into the frame and later buried a second as part of a 15-4 run.
Even after the Wildcats trimmed their deficit to single digits once more, Quevedo continued her unyielding play by scoring five points in the final 40 ticks of the third quarter, including a buzzer-beating layup.
Radford won the third quarter, 25-18, and needed every bit of that cushion as ACU began the fourth on a 12-2 outburst, propelled by a pair of Golightly treys that made it a two-point game at 60-58.
Walker scored the following four points in giving the Highlanders a 64-58 lead, only to watch the Wildcats charge back on a 7-0 run, which gave them their first lead of the game (65-64) with 2:18 remaining.
ACU unfortunately missed its final three field goal attempts after Quevedo’s go-ahead 3-pointer and the Highlanders iced the game on Walker’s layup with 22 seconds left in regulation.
