Lopes fall at UTRGV after fierce fourth quarter rally

Thursday, February 9

Edinburg, TX

6:00 P.M.

Grand Canyon

12-9, 4-4WAC

UTRGV

16-9, 6-3WAC

Grand Canyon

UT Rio Grande Valley

2/9/2017 8:45:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: Imani Suber

EDINBURG, Texas -- The Grand Canyon women's basketball program fell to UTRGV 52-49 in a close call Thursday night. The Lopes put together a fierce four quarter rally to take the lead with seconds left on the clock. But, UTRGV answered to snatch back the lead and ultimately the contest.

Casey Rarrick led the squad with 14 points, going 5-of-10 from the field and 4-of-7 from long range. Erika Thomas stepped in and lead on the glass pulling down a team-high 15 points, the most boards by a single player this season. Brie Mobley produced picked up her third double double of the season off a 11 point, 10 rebound outing. She also dished out five assists.

How it Happened
While the first half didn't yield much action for GCU, the Lopes finally found their groove in the second half. GCU came out of gates more aggressive in the third. Putting together a 6-0 lead by Jessica Gajewski and Rarrick triples that brought GCU within three at 33-30, but UTRGV rattled off eight points on the board to conclude the third quarter at 38-30 UTRGV.

It came down to the final frame. GCU's offense was clicking as they went on a 5-0 run to cut UTRGV's lead to 38-35. The Lopes continued to battle for every basket as Rarrick banked a triple to come within four. Midway through the final frame Gajewski and Rarrick followed with back-to-back triples to bring the Lopes within one at 43-42. UTRGV remained relentless following with a jumper and a trey to go back up by five. Rarrick then pulled down the offensive board and converted it to bring the Lopes back within four at 48-44 with a little over a minute left in the game. Mobley then secured the layup to put GCU within two.

With seconds left on the clock, Marcos-Canedo snatched a huge steal for the Lopes to take possession. While Marcos-Canedo drained a three to briefly give the Lopes the lead at 49-48 with :13 seconds on the clock, UTRGV quickly answered with a layup to take back the lead at 50-49. GCU would run out of opportunities and ended the contest in a tough loss at 52-49.

Lopes Quotes
Head Coach Trent May
"Tough one on the road. I liked how we gave ourselves a chance to win, but disappointed we didn't walk away with a double-digit win. We can't play non-aggressive basketball for 28 minutes and shoot poorly in every category and expect anything different. We had some positives moments, but not enough tonight. With being a little light at the post position it was good to see Tanesha Daniels and Erika Thomas step in and compete. Erika made a big difference in second chance points with seven offensive rebounds and 15 overall."

Lopes Notes

Erika Thomas grabbed 15 boards, marking the first time a Lope has achieved the feat since Cheyenne Hendrington during the 2014-15 season.
Brie Mobley produced picked up her third double double of the season off a 11 point, 10 rebound outing. She also dished out five assists.

Up next
The Lopes conclude their road swing at NM State as they meet the Aggies on Sunday, Feb. 12 for an afternoon clash. Tip is set for 1 p.m. MST.