by TYLER, Texas – The Cameron women’s basketball team made a program record 18 three-point field goals as they beat UT Tyler 84-68 for their first Lone Star Conference division win of the season.
The Aggies, who finished shooting 45.7 percent from the floor, went 18-37 from long range in the win over the Patriots, doing most of their damage in the first half (54 points, 12-19 from three). The 18 triples topped the previous record, set earlier this season, of 16 while coming one shy of the LSC single game record for treys made (19 by Texas A&M-Kingsville in 2009).
Sophomore Maighan Hedge led the CU attack, scoring 25 points on 8-17 shooting (7-12 from three). Saturday’s performance was her fifth 20-plus point outing of the season. The Melbourne, Australia native also added seven rebounds and four assists in the win.
Three other Aggies reached double-figures against UT Tyler. Amaka Nwakamma finished one rebound shy of a double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds, while Stephanie Peterson scored 14 points, all of which came in the first 20 minutes of play. Additionally, Ava Battese (Comanche/PBPN) added 13 points and five rebounds while making three triples, giving her 252 made three-point field goals for her career at CU.
Cameron was on fire in the first quarter. After trading buckets to start the game, the Aggies used a 13-2 run to hold a 16-6 lead over the Patriots by the five-minute mark; they were 4-5 from three during that span. CU continued their hot shooting, using a 13-3 stretch to take a 20-point lead, 29-9 with less than a minute left in the frame. They won the period 31-11, shooting over 70 percent from the floor and going 7-8 from three, with Peterson leading the way with eight points.
In the second frame, CU’s pace slowed at the start, but a 12-2 run late in the quarter gave them a 51-20 advantage with just under a minute left in the half. Logan Collyer hit the squad’s 12th three of the first 20 minutes giving them 54 points by the break; they led UTT 54-25.
The Aggies shot a red-hot 56.8 percent from the floor in the first half, going 12-19 from three-point range. Peterson had 14 points on 5-8 shooting (4-6 from three), while Nwkamma added 12 points and Hedge chipped in 11 on 4-6 shooting from the field.
After their slow start to the game, UT Tyler started to come alive late in the third quarter, closing out the frame on a 15-3 run to cut the Aggies lead to 17, 68-51. Cameron was just 5-15 from the field in the period and 3-7 from long range. Hedge had a team-best seven points, giving her 18 total heading into the final quarter.
The Patriots carried their momentum into the fourth quarter, cut down the deficit to just 11 points, before a pair of big three-point makes from Hedge put the Aggies back up by 17, 77-60, with five minutes left on the clock. CU held off UTT, despite shooting just 33.3 percent in the fourth, winning their first division contest 84-68.
UT Tyler didn’t make it easy for CU to hold their big halftime lead, shooting nearly 70 percent from the field and going 7-9 from three in the second half. They finished the game shooting 43.1 percent from the floor while going 9-19 from deep.
