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NM State final surge comes up short against Liberty
Source: NMSU Athletics
By Louis Bolander
Photo: Courtesy
LYNCHBURG, Va. – NM State began its two-game road stretch by facing off against the Liberty Lady Flames in the high mountains of Lynchburg, Va. Though the Aggies would score eight points within the final minute of play, it was not enough for the Crimson and White to earn a lead over Liberty, and they would fall, 63-58.
The Aggies began the game going toe-to-toe with Liberty as both Sylena Peterson and Fanta Gassama would score a pair of layups to start out. Liberty’s Emma Hess would sink in three separate field goals to extend the lead for the Lady Flames early. However, Molly Kaiser also answered back to Hess’s shooting performance and scored four field goals of her own to put the Aggies on top by the end of the first period, 16-15.
NM State would begin the next quarter with a 6-0 run to give the Aggies their largest lead in the entire matchup at 22-15. Liberty would slowly hack away at the Aggies’ lead midway through the period. From the 6:37 mark to the end of the quarter, Kaiser would be lone Aggie to score against the Lady Flames as she would close out the first half with 16 points and help the Aggie hold on to a one-point lead (31-30) at the break.
Coming out of the locker room, Liberty quickly went on an 8-0 run to put the Lady Flames back in front. The Aggies were held to just seven points in the third quarter as they seemed to face an overwhelming drought in the first five minutes of the quarter. The Aggies’ dry spell gave their opponent a comfortable margin as they headed to the final period.
The Aggies did regain momentum as they started the fourth quarter on an 11-1 run which allowed them to take the lead back. Unfortunately, this was erased by the Lady Flames’ 11-2 run shortly after to push the home side back to a seven-point lead over the Aggies. In the final minute, NM State was forced to begin fouling Liberty for a final attempt to take hold of the win. Though NM State scored five points in the last few seconds, it would finish five points shy of the Lady Flames’ score to fall 58-63.
NUMBERS OF NOTE:
–Molly Kaiser finished with 16 points in the first half of play and 25 overall against the Lady Flames. With this performance, she was just three points shy from setting the scoring record in Liberty Arena, which is currently held by Eastern Kentucky’s Antwainette Walker 28-point performance on Feb. 23, 2023.
-The Aggies finished with their lowest shooting performance from the perimeter this season, only managing to sink three of their 17 attempts (18%).
–Madi Gewirtz picked up a career high of seven rebounds (one offensive, six defensive) in a single game while leading the team in boards simultaneously.
-NM State held the Flames to 25% worse from deep than the last time the two teams faced off.
UP NEXT:
NM State continues their coastal trip as they head down to Miami to battle against FIU once again. The game will be played on Saturday at 11:00 am MST in the Ocean Bank Convocation Center.
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