LUBBOCK, Texas – The Angelo State women's basketball team had its season come to a heartbreaking end with a 61-59 loss to Lubbock Christian at the NCAA Division II South Central Semifinal on Saturday night in Lubbock, Texas.

The Belles finish the season at 23-7 while Lubbock Christian 30-1 advance to face West Texas A&M on Monday in the NCAA Division II South Central Regional final. Angelo State scored 16 points off 17 LCU turnovers but struggled at the free throw line only shooting 12-of-21 (57 percent). The Chaps hit 42 percent from the field and scored 36 points in the paint compared to just 30 for ASU. Neither team led by more than six and the game featured 11 ties and 14 lead changes.

Two players scored in double figures for Angelo State. Marquita Daniels scored 17 points and grabbed seven rebounds. She also recorded four assists and four steals. De'Anira Moore added 16 points and seven rebounds. It was the final games for seniors Keanna Kelly, Madi Greenwood, Ekiya Gray and Daniels.

Dezirae Hampton's 3-pointer with 2:40 left gave ASU its largest lead of the night at 58-53 but LCU answered with a jumper to make it 58-55 with 1:53 left. Kelly was fouled shooting a 3-pointer and hit one free throw to make it a two possession game at 59-55 with 39 seconds remaining. The Chaps would finish the game on a 6-0 run as ASU would miss a pair of free throws and two shots that would have tied or gave the Belles the lead.

Angelo State trailed by four going into the fourth quarter. Moore hit the first jumper of the fourth quarter and Gray followed it up with a 3-pointer to give ASU a 50-49 advantage. Less than a minute later, the game was tied at 51. The two teams exchanged baskets back and forth a pair of free throws from Moore sparked the 5-0 run to give ASU the 58-53 advantage.

Tied at half, LCU opened the second half with a 3-pointer but Moore responded with an old fashioned 3-point play. The sophomore go the ball inside and hit a layup but was fouled. She made the ensuing free throw to tie the game. Kelly drained a 3-pointer but LCU scored three straight points to tie the game at 41. The Chaps scored four straight points until Dearria Watson hit a jumper to cut the deficit to two. LCU extended their lead to 49-43 but a Kynese Davis layup made it 49-45 at the end of the third quarter.  

The first quarter alone features nine lead changes and three ties. Moore and Daniels hit back-to-back jumpers in the first minute of the game but like the majority of the game LCU answered with three straight points to tie the game. The Chaps went on a 7-2 over the next three minutes of the game to build an 11-6 lead. Moore hit a pair of free throws to spark a 6-0 run to give Angelo State the lead back with three minutes remaining in the first quarter. The two teams again traded baskets until Moore hit a layup with 1:14 to go to make it 17-15. Neither team would score for the rest of the quarter.

Daniels made one of her four steals and turned it into a layup for a four point advantage. The Belles held the lead and pushed it to five with a Daniels 3-pointer at the 7:12 mark of the second quarter. The Chaps would score the next five points to tie the game for the fourth time. Each time one team would hit a basket the other would answer. Down by three with under 30 seconds to go, Hampton hit a 3-pointer to close out the half tied at 35.

The Belles conclude the season with at least 20 wins and an appearance in the NCAA Division II South Central Regional for the third straight season. ASU also has won two Lone Star Conference Championships and a LSC Tournament Championship over the last three seasons.