Ladyjacks Fall to Trailblazers in Regular Season Finale

Saturday, March 9

St. George, UT

3:00 p.m.

Stephen F. Austin

20-11,14-6WAC

Utah Tech

18-13,12-8WAC

SFA

Utah Tech

Ladyjacks Fall to Trailblazers in Regular Season Finale

3/9/2024 7:30:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: Peter Trainor, Student Assistant for Strategic Communications

ST. GEORGE, Utah. - The Stephen F. Austin women's basketball team (20-11, 14-6) fell 69-61 on the road to the Utah Tech Trailblazers (18-13, 12-8) in both teams final regular season game this season.

The first quarter saw the Trailblazers get on the board with a three-pointer on their opening possession, which was responded by Kurstyn Harden getting SFA's scoring started with a layup. Following the teams exchanging a basket each on their next possession, Tyler McCliment-Call knocked down her first triple of the game for SFA to give them a 7-5 lead, only for Calyn Dallas to respond with a three-pointer of her own for Utah Tech to put them back in the lead 8-7 three minutes into the first. Following the two schools exchanging some points at the halfway mark that saw Utah Tech holding a 11-9 lead, Avery VanSickle exploded for five straight points for SFA highlighted by her first triple of the game to help spark a 7-0 scoring run for SFA; capped off with a Kyla Deck jumper to give SFA a 16-11 lead with 45 seconds left in the first. However, Alyson Deaver would drain a triple for Utah Tech to cut the SFA lead down to two points at 16-14 heading into the second quarter.

The Trailblazers wasted no time regaining the lead in the second quarter as they exploded for a 10-0 scoring run to open up the second to establish themselves to a 24-16 lead three minutes into the second quarter. Kyla Deck would knock down a three-pointer on the ensuing SFA possession to help spark a 7-1 scoring run by SFA, with Deck hitting another triple and Harden draining a free-throw to cut the Utah Tech lead down to two points at 25-23 halfway through the second. Following a mini 5-0 scoring run by the Trailblazers, Mele Finau would get in on the three-point action with her first of the game to cut the Trailblazers lead down to 30-26 which would be the last score until the final 30 seconds of the quarter as points were hard to come by. Following a pair of free-throws for the Trailblazers, Avery VanSickle would draw a shooting foul and drain both her free-throws, but Breaunna Gillen closed out scoring for the half with a layup for Utah Tech to give them a 34-28 lead heading into the locker rooms.

Mele Finau wasted no time getting the second half scoring started for SFA as she would splash her second triple of the game just 10 seconds into the third to cut the Utah Tech lead to three points at 34-31. However, the next four minutes would be all Trailblazers as they would embark on a 15-2 scoring run to extend their lead to double-digits at 49-33 halfway through the third. SFA would rattle off four straight points thanks to free-throws from Trinity Moore and Kurstyn Harden to pull within 12 of the Trailblazers at 49-37. The two schools would exchange a pair of baskets, however, Kurstyn Harden ended the third quarter on a strong note for SFA as she would score the final four points for the Ladyjacks to give her 15 for the game to that point and SFA found themselves trailing by just 11 at 54-43 heading into the fourth quarter.

Harden would pick right where she left off in the third as she would bank home a layup to begin the fourth to help spark a 9-2 scoring run for SFA, with Trinity Moore and Avery VanSickle both making baskets, and Kyla Deck capping off the run with another three-pointer to cut the Trailblazers lead back to single digits at 56-52 three minutes into the fourth. These two schools would furiously exchange baskets over the next three minutes with points from Kyla Deck, and Kurstyn Harden quickly being offset with Utah Tech baskets with the Trailblazers still holding a slim 62-59 lead with three minutes remaining in the game. Kurstyn Harden would make a layup for SFA with two minutes remaining to bring SFA to within a point at 62-61, however, the Trailblazers would score all the remaining points in this one as they would close the game on a 7-0 scoring run to close out the 69-61 win over SFA at home.

Kurstyn Harden continues to shine the brightest in some of the biggest games for SFA this season as she has now recorded five straight games with 20+ points and continues to make a very compelling case for WAC Player of the Year. Harden has led the Ladyjacks in points in five straight games, continuing that trend tonight as she finished with 24 points while pulling down 12 rebounds to polish off her eight double-double of the season, which is tied for second most in the WAC this season. Kyla Deck formed a nice outside scoring threat to Harden's inside scoring today as Deck drained a team-high three triples in route to a 15-point performance, that also saw Deck lead the team in assists with five on the afternoon. Avery VanSickle and Mele Finau formed a dynamic duo today as they combined for 15 points, seven rebounds, five assists, one block, and steal against the Trailblazers.

The Ladyjacks drained seven three-pointers, knocked down 20 field goals, and made 14 free-throws today against Utah Tech. The Ladyjacks crashed the boards for 43 rebounds today, with 13 of those being offensive rebounds which they converted into six second chance points, while scoring 24 points in the paint largely due to another dominating Kurstyn Harden performance. Meanwhile, the Ladyjacks recorded eight steals and three blocks, turning those into 16 points off turnovers, while getting 13 bench points on the afternoon.

The Ladyjacks regular season schedule has come to a close after today, however, there is plenty more basketball to be played for the Ladyjacks as they will be traveling to Las Vegas for WAC Vegas with their opponent still yet to be determined with the bracket for WAC Vegas being released tomorrow.