DALLAS – It was a battle for three and a half quarters, as University of North Texas at Dallas women's basketball held strong against No. 18 Mid-America Christian on Thursday night at Ellis Davis Field House. The Trailblazers held a narrow lead in the first quarter and were close most of the game, pulling within two points early in the third. With around four and a half minutes left and down three (41-38), the Evangels wore down UNTD and went on a 15-5 run to close the third period and would maintain a double-digit lead the rest of the way to secure a 77-57 final.
 
The Trailblazers dropped their fourth straight and are 4-12 overall and 3-11 in conference play. MACU improved to 15-2 overall and 11-2 in conference play. The Evangels won the season series 2-0.
 
UNT Dallas battled in a back-and-forth opening quarter that resulted in a an even 14-14 score. MACU scored two quick baskets, but the Trailblazers' top scoring senior duo Eryka Patton (Hutchins, Texas) and Skye Dugan (Richardson, Texas) answered with consecutive baskets of their own to lock the score. A pair of free throws by senior ShanDrea Yeldell (Dallas, Texas) gave the Trailblazers their first lead of the game, 6-5. A few possessions later had Patton give the home team their greatest lead of the game with an 8-5 score and just over four minutes left. The Trailblazers answered scores by the Evangels the next several minutes to keep a three-point gap for the next minute. Consecutive trifectas by MACU's Hailey Tunnell changed the lead to the guests. Patton tallied the final three points of the quarter and had a jumper to level the score with a minute left and that's how things stood at the first break.
 
The second quarter started with the Evangels scoring the first five points in a minute and a half. That was the difference, as MACU outscored the Trailblazers 17-12 in the frame. UNT Dallas answered the 5-0 run with a jumper by senior Mya Bills (Rockwall, Texas), but the nationally ranked Evangels scored eight in a row to make it an 11-point advantage with around five and half minutes before intermission.
 
Freshman Lauren Pete (Rockwall, Texas) drilled a trey from the deep left corner and a steal by Yeldell led to a fastbreak layup to make it a two-possession game. After a block by junior Allysa Pendley (Waco, Texas) got the stop, a layup by Pete completed a 7-0 surge to slash the gap to 27-23 with 4:20 left. Bills scored the final points of the quarter, as her trey made it a 31-26 halftime score. Bills and Pete combined for 10 of the team's 12 points with five each.
 
Patton had two early layups to cut the deficit to a point to start a game-changing third period. In the early portion, the Trailblazers continued their upset bid as the team competed to hesitate momentum and either got a key stop or basket to frustrate the Evangels. From 6:36 to 5:26, MACU rattled off seven points to grow the lead back to nine (41-32). Back-to-back triples from Bills and Pete, who each scored double figures made it a one-possession game. Mid-America Christian etched 15 of the next 20 points to break into a double-digit lead again, which included a 56-43 score at the end of the frame. A pair of free throws by Patton had kept the game at five (45-40), but an 8-0 run and scoring drought over two minutes made the difference.
 
UNT Dallas did not answer in the fourth, as its feisty effort could not keep up and a 21-14 scoring period favoring the Evangels saw them secure the victory.
 
Patton added another double-double to her season total with eight now. She posted team-highs in points (17) and rebounds (10). She added an assist, block, and steal. Bills and Pete were the other double-digit scorers with 14 and 11, respectively. Pete had a personal-high and the pair netted the team's only three-pointers with two each. Both had key baskets at the time as mentioned earlier.
 
Dugan only had five points but impacted in other facets of the game by grabbing nine rebounds, dishing eight assists – which is one shy of the single-game record, and swiped three steals. It is the third game this season Dugan has grabbed nine boards and is one off her season-best against Nelson (12/14/24). Pendley posted a season-high four blocks, and the team had a season-most eight on the year. The team has 14 in the past two games.
 
UNT Dallas shot 32.8 percent from the floor and was 11-for-16 at the free throw line. The team held a nine to seven edge on steals, with the starting five from the Trailblazers responsible for eight of them. UNTD held a 17-5 edge on fastbreak points.
 
The Evangels shot 43.5 percent from the field and were five-of-11 from downtown. They scored 18 points on free throws with 33 attempts. MACU tallied a 50-33 advantage on rebounds, but only held a 7-3 advantage on second chance points. The Evangels did score 40 points in the paint compared to 24 by UNTD.
 
Syncere Harrod scored a game-high 23 points and was 9-of-13 from the floor. Tunnell had 4-of-5 shots made from three that led to her 12 points. Kylee Scheer and Shy Christopher added 11 and 10, respectively.
 
UNT Dallas plays two games over the next four days on the road against Oklahoma City and Science and Arts. Tip-off at OCU is Saturday at 2:00 p.m. and at Science and Arts on Monday at 1:00 p.m.