USU Women’s Hoops celebrate senior night with an OT victory
LOGAN — The last time Utah State and Fresno State met on the hardwood, the Aggies looked slow and sloppy. The Bulldogs won handily. As the Aggies and Bulldogs met on Wednesday, USU looked to perform better on senior night and enter the Mountain West Tournament with momentum.
The contest required overtime, but in the end, the Aggies prevailed 96-90, making this the highest-scoring game USU has had this season. They finish the regular season 18-10 (5-13 in conference play.) It’s a dramatic improvement from a 4-20, (2-16) record last year.
Similar to the first game, much of Fresno State’s success Wednesday night came from the Cavinder twins. Haley recorded a game-high 27 points and added seven rebounds and five assists. Hanna scored 20 points and dished out seven assists. The two combined for over half of the Bulldogs’ points.
Utah State’s success came from many different places. Four Aggies recorded double-digits. Adryana Quezada continued her recent dominance with 22 points. Emmie Harris’ last game in the Spectrum was typical as she led the Aggies with seven assists. E’Lease Stafford also notched 10 rebounds in her final home game.
From start to finish, the atmosphere inside The Spectrum was electric. USU football players and HURD members showed out to support the lady Aggies in their regular-season finale.
The loudest moment of the game occurred when Shyla Latone made a Bulldog defender fall. In addition to the ankle breaker, Latone drilled a running jumper while getting fouled. The reaction from fans was deafening and ignited the Aggies.
The energy shown by Aggie faithful did not go unnoticed.
“I think it was huge,” Coach Ard said when asked about the environment. “(They were) definitely our 6th-man tonight, and we can not thank them enough for being here.”
The Bulldogs led most the game. Before the overtime period, USU lead for just 3:16 of the game.
But in the fourth quarter the Aggies hit another gear. They outscored Fresno State 18-11 to force overtime. To open overtime, Kaylin Randhawa hit a 3-pointer to give USU an 84-81 lead. The lead wasn’t surrendered.
As the final horn sounded, streamers flew in from the stands, and the USU faithful stormed the court.
“The support and the energy were great in here, and I really think it contributed to our win today,” Harris said after the game.
The Aggies now enter the Mountain West tournament coming off of two impressive wins.
“This is huge for us,” Ard said. “Our girls knowing they can beat anybody they want when they are that determined.”
The Aggies will meet the Fresno State Bulldogs for the third time in the first round of the Mountain West Tournament on Sunday.