Colorado State University Athletics
Colorado State
5-7
New Mexico State
5-7
Rams Falter at New Mexico State
12/29/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 29, 2006
The Colorado State University women's basketball team (5-7) fell to the New Mexico State Aggies (5-7), 71-55, at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, N.M., on Friday night. Sophomore Kelly Finley led the Rams with a 16 point, seven rebound effort in just 23 minutes off the bench for the Rams.
Colorado State fell behind early in the contest, trailing by as much as 11 points, 13-2, just five minutes into the contest. The Rams battled back behind the play of posts, Juanise Cornell, Marilyn Moulton and Finley, who combined for 21 first-half points to lead Colorado State to a 29-29 tie at halftime.
The second half began much the same as the first, with the Rams' offense struggling early in the half. The Aggies used a 19-5 run to begin the half to push their lead to 48-34. The Rams responded with a 10-4 run of their own to cut the deficit to eight points, 52-40, with 6:55 remaining in the contest.
A 10-2 run by the Aggies, triggered by eight points from New Mexico State's leading scorer, Sherell Neal (19 points), pushed the lead back to 17 points, 62-45, and effectively took the Rams out of the contest.
Along with Finley's 16 points and seven rebounds, Cornell posted 10 points for the Rams, eight coming in the first half, and grabbed five rebounds.
The Rams three leading scorers, Kelly Jo Mullaney (four points), Molly Nohr (three points) and Sara Hunter (six points), combined for just 13 points in the contest, well below their combined season average of 41.4 points per game.
Next up, the Colorado State will play their third consecutive road game when they take on the Air Force Falcons to begin Mountain West Conference play. The Rams and Falcons are set to tip off at Clune Arena at 7 p.m. MT on Jan. 4.
