The University of Incarnate Word Women's Basketball team go off to a fast start against Lamar University on Saturday, but they could not hold off their namesake in the second half, falling 80-69 in the final game at the McDermott Center in the 2025-26 season.

Brynn Lusby led UIW with 15 points in 23 minutes off the bench. She shot 5-for-10 from the floor and hit all 5 of her free throws to go along with 4 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 steal on the afternoon. Gwendlyn McGrew and Jorja Elliott each had 13 points, combining to knock down 5-of-10 from three-point range. Elliiott, playing on her senior day in front of the home crowd, also chipped in 6 rebounds and 2 assists. Other notable stat lines came from Madison Cockrell, who paced the Cardinals with 5 assists in addition to her 9 points, a point total that was matched by Destiny Whitaker.

Overall, the Cardinals shot 48.1 percent from the floor and 45 percent from distance, but they committed 20 turnovers and had three starters battle foul trouble, giving Lamar an edge in the second half.

Incarnate Word briefly trailed to open the game, but after settling in, the Cardinals opened-up a 14-10 lead after McGrew pulled up on the break and cashed in a three-pointer. UIW's defense limited Lamar's opportunities and Incarnate Word took advantage on the other end of the floor, stretching their lead to as many as 9 points in the first quarter before a three-pointer by Madison Williams had UIW in front, 28-20, after 10 minutes of play.

The hot shooting displayed in the first quarter cooled at the outset of the second quarter with the Cardinals being held scoreless for nearly the first 7 minutes of the frame. In that time Lamar flipped the game's momentum in their favor, going on an 11-0 run to go up 31-28, their first lead since the opening minutes.

Whitaker broke the scoring drought with a game-tying three-pointer, sparking a 7-0 run that put the Cardinals back in front, 35-31, with 1:22 to halftime. UIW continued to lead by 4 in the closing seconds, but it was Lamar's turn for a last-second basket as the opposing Cardinals hit a 3 to make it 37-36 in favor of UIW at the half.

Lamar scored the first basket of the third quarter to retake the lead but would not lead by more than 4 for the majority of the third quarter. Incarnate Word clawed back in front, with Lusby completing a personal 5-0 run to put the Cardinals on top 51-50, but Lamar closed the quarter on a 10-3 run, capped-off by yet another buzzer-beating three-pointer, to put UIW behind 60-54 with a quarter to go.

Another slow start to open the quarter put UIW behind the eight ball as Lamar opened up a 72-56 lead with under 5 minutes to play in the game, making it an extended 22-5 run from UIW's last lead. The Cardinals were able to quickly cut the lead to 10 points, but the clock was the hardest opponent at that point and Incarnate Word would fall, 80-69.

The Cardinals conclude the 2025-26 regular season on Monday, March 2nd with a visit to Texas Rio Grande Valley. The game, being broadcast on ESPN+, is set to start at 4:00 p.m.