SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS – The University of the Incarnate Word women's basketball team fell short of a miracle comeback as they dropped a close Southland Conference game against Nicholls, 66-64 on Saturday at the McDermott Center.

The Cardinals (5-15, 2-6) created three turnovers off the Colonels inbounds in three straight possessions to erase a 12-point lead by the Colonels and make it a 2-point game with five seconds left, and a chance for UIW to tie it.

Brianna Williams (Wylie/Mesquite HS), who had a terrific game with 15 points, put up a shot that nearly went in at the buzzer.  Her driving layup attempt would have tied the game, but instead, the Colonels (7-12, 5-4) will take a road conference win back to Thibodaux, Louisiana.

The teams played an even first half as both teams shot around the same percentage from the field.  UIW shot 37.5 percent, while the Colonels shot 35.3.  Both teams made three three-pointers in the half, and Nicholls went into halftime with a two-point lead, 30-28.

The Cardinals came out strong in the third quarter and a 13-1 run that started at the end of the first half gave the team a 38-31 lead midway through the period.  Nicholls was able to close the quarter on an 11-4 run to tie the game at 46-46 heading into the final frame.

The game was still tied, 54-54 with 6:39 to play after a jumper by Haley Frias (Georgetown/Georgetown HS), but the Colonels followed with a 12-0 run and led 66-54 with 3:05 to play.  The Cardinals would not give up and they held the visitors scoreless over the final three minutes.  A Williams three-pointer with 1:41 started UIW on their comeback.  It was still an 8-point game with 56 seconds remaining after Quincy Baker (Houston/Klein HS) made 1-of-2 at the foul line.

A defensive stop led to a fastbreak layup by Melina Merritt (Round Rock/Cedar Ridge HS) with 21 ticks left when Nicholls nearly gave the game away with three straight turnovers, but UIW's final shot would not fall.

LiAnn McCarthy led the Colonels in scoring with 19 points, on 8-of-18 shooting from the field and also added six rebounds, one block and two steals. As a team, Nicholls shot 39.0 percent from the field, made 6-of-20 threes and finished 14-of-19 from the free-throw line.

The Cardinals had three players in score in double digits.  Yvonne Maosa (Arlington/Mansfield HS) led the way with 17 points and nine rebounds, and was a perfect 9-of-9 from the charity stripe. Williams finished with 15 and Aricka Adams (Round Rock/Round Rock HS) contributed with 13 points, two assists and two steals. Celia Garcia Paunero (Valladolid, Spain/Otero JC) did a great job grabbing rebounds for the Cardinals, finishing with nine, one of which was on the offensive glass.  Merritt finished with seven points and led the team with five assists.

The Cardinals shot 40.0 percent from the field, made 4-of-12 from beyond the arc and shot 16-of-19 from the free-throw line.

UIW will get a quick opportunity for revenge as they travel to Thibodaux, Louisiana to face these same Colonels on Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. as part of a three-game road-trip that includes Nicholls, Lamar and Stephen F. Austin.
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