ODESSA, TX – The UT Permian Basin Falcons stay in the playoff hunt knocking off the number one team in the conference, and number three team in the country, Texas Women's, 69-57 Saturday night in the Falcon Dome.
The last time the Falcons won over a top five team was in 2014 when the Falcons defeated number one ranked West Texas A&M on the road 77-73.
UTPB started the game flaming hot, stunning TWU with a 14-0 run on four three pointers from Holly Hemmeline.
TWU clawed back into the game tying things up at 25-25 with about four minutes left to play in the first half, but the Falcons reclaimed the lead and went into halftime on top at the half 32-28.
UTPB started the third quarter still red hot and extended their lead to double digits, finishing the third quarter up 51-41.
In the fourth quarter, the Pioneers made a run and pulled within two points of the Falcons with about three minutes left to play in the game. UTPB finished out the quarter with 14 free throws, plus one more off a layup-and-one from Makayla Bingley to pull away from the Pioneers and secure the second upset of the week with a 69-57 win.
Hemmeline finished the night with 19 points with five three pointers and a pair of rebounds. Bingley had 14 points, six rebounds, and was perfect from the free throw line going seven-for-seven. Avalon Munoz put up 11 points to go with her six boards and three assists. Khiara Flugence had a great night of the bench with nine points and seven rebounds.
Falcons by the numbers:
Points in the paint: 20
Points off turnovers: 16
Second chance points: 13
Fast break points: 10
Bench points: 16
Next for UTPB is another top ranked team in the conference as the Falcon will finish the season at Angelo State Thursday night at 5:30 pm.
To keep up with all the Falcon action, be sure to download the UTPB Athletics App by clicking HERE.