
CEDAR CITY, Utah – Tarleton State Women’s Basketball completed its road sweep this week and defeated Southern Utah 74-53 on Saturday afternoon at America First Event Center.
Collecting the victory at Utah Tech on Thursday, the Texans return to Stephenville with a pair of road wins and a three-game winning streak. It is the first time under head coach Bill Brock the Texans won both games in the same WAC road trip.
Senior guard Jakoriah Long led the Texans with a season-high 21 points and 80% shooting from beyond the arc, knocking down eight of her 12 shots on Saturday. Fellow senior guard Arieona Rosborough added 16 points and four assists while senior forward Elise Turrubiates came up with 12 points and eight rebounds.
“The most satisfying thing about today is the way we finished the game,” Brock said. “We had some instances in the last couple of weeks where we didn’t finish the game strong. But we did today. I thought we set the tempo in the first quarter and that really worked in our favor.”
Rosborough and Long got the Texans’ scoring started with back-to-back baskets, helping Tarleton State score on four of its first five offensive possessions. Southern Utah made it a one-possession game before Turrubiates capitalized off a Thunderbirds’ turnover with a basket to put Tarleton State back up by six. Long capped off the first quarter scoring with a 3-pointer with three seconds left in the period that allowed the Texans to take a 19-12 lead.
Long quickly put the Texans in front by double digits, hitting another 3-pointer on Tarleton State’s first offensive possession of the second quarter. Jumpers from senior forward Andjela Bigović and Long allowed the Texans to stretch its lead 26-12 with just over five minutes to play in the first half.
Southern Utah, however, did not go away quietly in the first half and responded with seven unanswered points. The Texans got a lift from its bench, with sophomore forward Anya McKenzie getting a steal and a layup to swing the momentum. Rosborough knocked down a jumper with 26 seconds left in the first half to give Tarleton State a 10-point lead heading into the locker room.
Turrubiates opened the second half scoring with a second chance basket that was followed by a Long layup. The Thunderbirds cut the deficit to eight points with two consecutive buckets, but the Texans produced thunder of their own.
After going on a 7-0 scoring run, the Texans went up by 16 points thanks to a Rosborough jumper with just under one minute left in the period. The Texans maintained its double digit lead for the final seven minutes of the period and went ahead 53-40 heading into the fourth quarter.
The Texans’ shooting stayed hot, hitting eight of its final 13 shots to close the game. A layup by senior guard Niki Van Wyk allowed the Texans to push out in front by 20 points, a margin that was maintained for the final five minutes of the game.
Tarleton State returns to Wisdom Gym to take on Seattle U on Thursday at 7 p.m. for National Girls & Women in Sports Day.
Postgame Notes
- After winning at Utah Tech on Thursday, Tarleton State swept its Utah road trip with a 74-53 win at Southern Utah on Saturday at America First Event Center. The Texans have now won three games in a row.
- Tarleton State won both games on a WAC road trip for the first time under head coach Bill Brock. It is the first time since the 2020-21 season the Texans took both games on a WAC road trip (Chicago State).
- The Texans had only seven turnovers, its lowest mark of the season. It is the fewest turnovers in a game by a Tarleton State team since Feb. 29, 2024 (six vs. Utah Tech).
- The Texans never trailed in Saturday’s game, the fifth game this season they led from start to finish. Tarleton State never trailed on its Utah road trip this week.
- Senior guard Jakoriah Long scored a season-high 21 points off 80% 3-point shooting and a 66.7% overall field goal percentage. It was her first 20-point game since March 13, 2024 (20 vs. ACU).
- Sophomore forward Anya McKenzie gave the Texans a lift in her first game since Jan. 11, scoring four points and grabbing three rebounds in 14 and a half minutes. Her two baskets on Saturday were her first in WAC play this season.
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