ST. GEORGE, Utah – Despite gaining their largest lead midway through the third quarter, Academy of Art University women's basketball saw the momentum shift when Dixie State went on a 19-2 run into the fourth quarter Saturday afternoon inside Burns Arena. Anyone's game in the final minute, the Trailblazers benefitted from a fortunate bounce of the basketball off a deflection late and held on to win 77-73.
An indication of back-and-forth nature of this one, ART U went ahead 9-3 on a hot start from freshman forward
Camilla Simola, but DSU came back to tie it up 14-14. The Knights shot nearly 70 percent from the field in the opening quarter and six straight points from redshirt senior forward
Pre'Franz Dominick helped build another lead, 27-22, at the conclusion of the first quarter.
The Trailblazers went on a 10-0 run in the early stages of the second quarter and would lead by as many as four, but eight bench points from Academy of Art in the final four minutes returned the score even, 41-41, by the arrival of halftime.
Simola remained productive offensively with two baskets in the early stages of the third quarter, the second of which initiated a 9-0 run that finished with senior forward
Helena Orts' second 3-pointer of the frame. Ahead 55-47 with four and a half minutes left in the third, Academy of Art was then hit by the aforementioned 19-2 run that included seven free throws and three layups.
When the dust had settled, Dixie State was up 66-57, but starting with another Orts triple, ART U immediately began working its way back. A three-point play conversion by redshirt senior guard
Jazzlynn Brewster made it just a two-point game, 68-66, with 4:43 on the clock.
A close game into the final minute, Dominick added a three-point play of her own to cut the lead to one at 74-73 with 33 seconds left. On DSU's next critical possession, the inbounds pass was deflected amid several players at half court and bounced the way of the Trailblazers resulting in a Kristin Baldwin layup to put Dixie State up 76-73 with 24 seconds left. Academy of Art came down the court quickly and ended up missing a two-point jumper, forcing them to implement the foul strategy. The Trailblazers split free throws, returned to the tough defense that had helped them gain the lead, and secured the 77-73 win.
Saturday's result drops ART U to 0-8 overall and 0-2 in PacWest action. Orts collected her first double-double of the season (22 points, 13 rebounds) while Simola finished with a career-high 16 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the field. Dominick added her second double-double of the year with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Brewster was the fourth Urban Knight to score in double figures, contributing 12 points plus seven assists.
One game into its PacWest campaign, Dixie State is now 5-3 on the year and 1-0 in conference play. Mariah Martin converted 10 of 11 free throws en route to a team-high 21 points plus six rebounds and five assists. Three other Trailblazers scored in double figures.
The Knights' first PacWest Conference home game comes this week when ART U hosts Notre Dame de Namur inside Kezar Pavilion this Wednesday, Dec. 6 at 5:30 p.m.
