HOBBS, NM---The 1st quarter for the Lady Mustang's home opener did not go as planned. USW trailed 21-7 at the end of the 1st quarter, but stormed back to within 4 points of Huston-Tillotson going into the half. The Lady Mustangs would tie the game up early in the 2nd half, but unfortunately would not see the lead ever again. Huston-Tillotson defeated USW 86-65 to open up RRAC play. 

"The girls played hard. It took them a while to get going. The 1st quarter was brutal and the 2nd quarter was beautiful. That's the way we wanted to push the tempo, look to get easy buckets in transition and play good defense. We tied it up early and we relaxed after that, allowing HT to take over." said Head Coach Devonte Brewer. 

The Lady Mustangs were led by Isabel Rodriguez who had a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds. The junior was 7-15 from the field and 5-8 from the free throw line. Rodriguez only turned the ball over once, in a contest that saw 34 team turnovers from USW. "Once she got over her mishaps in the 1st quarter, she just played hard. I always say if you play hard, good things will happen." said Brewer. 

Harlei Haceesa and Cherlee Collins both scored double-digit points on the evening and Collins led the team in assists with 7 total. 

USW hosts Our Lady of the Lake on Saturday afternoon with tip-off scheduled for 2:00 PM MST. As always, the game will be streamed through Mustang TV.