BELTON, Texas - The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor women's basketball team held strong against UT Dallas Thursday evening in Belton, earning a 50-43 win over the Comets. The win improved the Cru to 16-6 on the season and 11-4 in American Southwest Conference while the Comets fell to 13-9 overall and 9-6 in league play.
 
UMHB opened the game with a lead and held on to advantage through the first quarter, leading 12-8 after the first period. Lauren Baker led the Cru with five points in the quarter as UMHB shot 33.3 percent with five made field goals.
 
The Cru held advantage in the second quarter with Payton Hicks hitting a pair of free throws for a double-digit lead at the 1:11 mark. Neither team scored in the final minute of action, sending the contest into halftime with a 25-15 UMHB lead. Hampton led the Cru with six points in the first half while Baker added five and Arieona Rosborough had four. UMHB totaled 23 rebounds and five assists in the first 20 minutes of action.
 
UT Dallas fought back in the third quarter, cutting the gap to single digits with 6:27 remaining in the quarter. The Comets cut the gap to just three with 1:05 left in the quarter but Lauren Baker hit a jumper with 46 seconds remaining to put the Cru up 39-34.
 
The Cru led by four points with 1:51 left to play before Jaycie Brisco hit a jumper for a six-point lead. Rosborough added a free throw with 39 seconds remaining to put UMHB up by seven. UMHB's defense forced a pair of missed three-pointers in the final 30 seconds of action, holding on for the 50-43 win.
 
Baker led the Cru with 11 points, followed by Rosborough and McCall Hamption with seven points each. Brisco led the Cru with six rebounds while UMHB totaled 12 assists, six blocks and 10 steals. UMHB shot 34.5 percent in the contest and 25 percent from beyond the arc.
 
UMHB returns to action on Saturday, February 11^th in a 1 p.m. contest against University of the Ozarks at the Mayborn Campus Center in Belton.