HUNTSVILLE, Texas — The Chicago State women's basketball team (4-17, 3-9 WAC) fell to Sam Houston, 61-58, Saturday in a conference road contest.
In a thrilling game, the teams were tied, 57-57 with 2:35 left, with Sam Houston closing strong for the win.
Taylor Norris led the Cougars in scoring and rebounding, as the freshman piled up a career-high 11 points and 11 rebounds. Ana Haklicka added 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting, while Quentarra Mitchell scored nine points and grabbed eight rebounds.
In a razor-thin first quarter, the Cougars struck first on a Kyjai Miles layup before the two sides battled to a 6-6 tie after two minutes. Faith Cook from Sam Houston dominated the early stretch, hitting 10 free throws in the first 4:47, as the Bearkats led, 13-8, halfway through the first.
After the media timeout, Aaliyah Collins drained two layups, and Mitchell converted one of her own t lift the Cougars to a 15-13 lead at the 4:18 mark. Two minutes later, CSU led 19-15 when Sam Houston's Sydnee Kemp nailed a three, and a Bearkats run made it 22-21 Sam Houston at the end of the first quarter.
In the second, Sam Houston leapt out to a 27-23 lead in a stalemate of a first five minutes. Then, Norris executed a fastbreak layup, and a few Mitchell free throws, plus another two Norris scores, made it a 32-27 Chicago State lead.
Cook hit another three before the halftime break to bring the Bearkats closer, but the Cougars led, 35-30 at the half.
In quarter three, Sam Houston scored the first two buckets before Miles nailed a jumper to make it 37-34 Cougars. But over the next stretch, Damaya Telemaque led a run for the Bearkats that pushed Sam Houston to a 44-41 lead at the 1:30 mark. At the end of the quarter, it was 48-43 Bearkats.
Ana Haklicka and Christina Britter each offensively to start the fourth, as the Cougars and Bearkats worked to a 53-53 tie at the 4:24 mark.
With under three minutes on the clock, Norris then drilled a point-blank layup to push CSU up 57-55. Telemaque soon tied it on her own layup, and Sam Houston then took the lead with 55 seconds left on a Courtney Cleveland short shot.
With 51 seconds left, Haklicka drew a foul and hit the first of two free throws before Sam Houston took possession and drew a foul of their own. Cook and Cleveland each hit foul shots down the stretch, and Allysah Boothe's three missed with three seconds left. The Bearkats held on to win, 61-58.
The Cougars next head home to face Stephen F. Austin on Wednesday, Feb. 16 at 6:00 p.m. The Lumberjacks and Cougars last met on Thursday, an 84-55 win for SFA.
About Chicago State
Chicago State University Athletics is comprised of 15 intercollegiate teams involving over 150 student-athletes that compete in basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and volleyball. CSU held memberships in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and NCAA Division II before transitioning to NCAA Division I in 1994. Melvin Bland was the first CSU student-athlete to gain NAIA All-American status in 1974 as a wrestler. Fred Evans became the first black swimmer ever to win a national championship in 1975. In 1991, the Chicago State women's tennis team became the first all-black college team to amass an unbeaten season at the NCAA level. CSU's women's basketball team earned a spot in the 2011 Women's Basketball Invitational and CSU's men's basketball team won the 2013 Great West Conference Tournament title, also making an appearance in the CollegeInside.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). The Men's Outdoor Track & Field 4x100-Meter Relay team were 2019 Honorable Mention All-Americans and WAC Champions. Their feat marked the first time the Chicago State's men's track & field program was represented at the national meet. Chicago State volleyball recorded a historic season in 2021, with Yanlis Feliz becoming CSU's first volleyball All-American and head coach Tony Trifonov earning selection as WAC Coach of the Year.
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