Tag Archives: women’s college basketball

UTSA women carry momentum into a Wednesday night home game against UNLV

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Cheyenne Rowe. UTSA women's basketball beat Texas State 64-41 on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Cheyenne Rowe leads the Roadrunners with 13.7 points and also averages 7.5 rebounds. After a stirring comeback victory against Grand Canyon (Ariz.) last week, UTSA plays a home game Wednesday night against the four-time defending Mountain West champion UNLV Lady Rebels. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Six days have passed since the UTSA women registered a stunning comeback victory against the Arizona-based Grand Canyon Lopes in Frisco, and players are still talking about it.

Especially about how Roadrunners forward Cheyenne Rowe took over the game in the final minutes.

“Honestly, it wasn’t a shocker to me,” UTSA guard Jayda Holiman said Tuesday, on the eve of a Wednesday night home game against the UNLV Lady Rebels. “You know, Cheyenne, she’s a big-time player. She does those things. She does it in practice all the time.”

Trailing by 10, UTSA outscored Grand Canyon 18-7 in the final 3:35 to win by one. Rowe scored 10 of her career-high 20 points in the final 2:03 to punctuate the Roadrunners’ 65-64 victory.

“We know, when it’s time, it’s time for Cheyenne Rowe to go,” Holiman said. “I really trust Chey as a player. She works hard. Always. Has a great attitude as well. I really respect her.

“Honestly, it was just Chey being Chey.”

The defending American Conference champion Roadrunners will need another big effort to beat the Lady Rebels, who have won four straight Mountain West regular-season titles.

UNLV (4-3) has won two straight games, beating Creighton and Northern Iowa off campus last week in Las Vegas.

The Rebels opened the season with victories at home over Washington State and DePaul, before losing three straight against Baylor, Montana State and Arizona State. UNLV lost to nationally-ranked Baylor at home and the other two on the road.

UTSA (3-3) has played fairly consistently on the defensive end lately while struggling at times to put up points on offense.

At Frisco, in the Hoopfest Women’s Basketball Challenge, the Roadrunners turned it over 30 times in losing their opener to Auburn, 59-42.

After a 48-hour break, they defeated Grand Canyon, 65-64, winning on Rowe’s two free throws with seven seconds left and a defensive stop in the paint just before time expired.

Records

UNLV 4-3
UTSA 3-3

Coming up

UNLV at UTSA, Wednesday, 7 p.m.
UTSA at Baylor, Sunday, 2 p.m.

Notable

Both UTSA and UNLV are in transition from last year’s championship seasons.

Of the nine UTSA players in the rotation now, only Idara Udo was a starter for the team that won a school-record 26 games a year ago and advanced to the WBIT.

Returners in expanded roles this season include forwards Rowe and Emilia Dannebauer and guards Damara Allen and Mia Hammonds.

UNLV also reached last year’s WBIT, and only two Lady Rebels who played in the second-round loss to Florida were on the floor in their most recent game against Northern Iowa — 6-2 forward Meadow Roland and guard Aaliyah Alexander.

Roland, who scored 25 against Creighton and 17 against Northern Iowa, leads the Lady Rebels with 16.3 points, 10.1 rebounds and 2.1 blocks. Guards Jasmin Lott (13.3) and Aaliyah Alexander (12.0) are also double-figures scorers.

Rowe-led UTSA women rally late to stun Grand Canyon, 65-64

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Showcasing equal parts effort, poise and skill in the clutch, the UTSA women erased a 10-point deficit in the final 3:32 Wednesday afternoon to stun the Grand Canyon (Ariz.) Lopes, 65-64, in the Hoopfest Women’s Basketball Challenge.

“Oh, man,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said later. “That was crazy.”

Cheyenne Rowe. UTSA women's basketball beat Texas State 64-41 on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Cheyenne Rowe scored 10 of her career-high 20 points in the final two minutes as the UTSA Roadrunners came from behind to beat the Grand Canyon Lopes. – File photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA senior forward Cheyenne Rowe scored 10 of her team- and career-high 20 points in the last 2:06 as the Roadrunners came back on the Lopes and left Frisco’s Comerica Center with a split of two games in the multi-team event.

She knocked down two free throws with seven seconds left to account for the final score. On the other end, Grand Canyon forward Anisa Jeffries missed a shot from the paint as time expired.

On Monday, the Roadrunners played poorly in the opener, shot 29 percent from the field and turned it over 30 times, as the Auburn Tigers beat them easily, 59-42. Against Grand Canyon, they started fast and led the Lopes for most of the first three quarters.

In the fourth, the Lopes made a charge. Down by two to start the quarter, they hit three three-pointers and outscored the Roadrunners 19-7 in the first seven minutes. A triple by Julia LaMendola splashed with 3:32 remaining and boosted Grand Canyon into a 57-47 lead.

Undeterred, the Roadrunners made play after play in the clutch to pull it out. “I thought we established some leadership tonight,” Aston told Neal Raphael on the team’s postgame radio broadcast. “For the first time, I thought we rose up and kind of carried our young guys.

“Cheyenne and Ereauna Hardaway, they rose to the top as far as leadership, and we needed that. We needed to see who could do that. This was really good for us.”

Faced with the 10-point deficit, UTSA called on junior transfer Jayda Holiman, who was making her first start of the season. The younger sister of former UTSA men’s team guard Adante’ Holiman initiated the late uprising with a three.

After a Lopes turnover, the Roadrunners rebounded three of their own misses on one possession and turned it into two Rowe free throws. When Rowe hit two with 2:06 remaining, Grand Canyon’s lead had been trimmed to five.

Grand Canyon guard Chloe Mann made it a seven-point game at 59-52 when she drew a foul and hit two free throws. On the next possession, the Lopes had a chance to boost the spread back to 10, but LaMendola misfired on a three.

Jayda Holiman. UTSA women's basketball beat Incarnate Word 74-57 on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025, at UIW. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Jayda Holiman earned her first start of the season and responded with 12 points and eight rebounds. – File photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA scored the next five points on a banked-in three by Rowe and two free throws by sophomore Emilia Dannebauer. In response, LaMendola dialed up another shot from long distance, and this one hit to put the Lopes up 62-57 with 49 seconds left.

Undaunted, the Roadrunners pushed it the other way and answered with a Damara Allen three, off an assist from Ereauna Hardaway.

Trailing by only two at that point, the Roadrunners didn’t need to foul, but they did, putting Ale’jah Douglas on the line. She hit two, boosting the Lopes into a 64-60 advantage with 36 seconds remaining.

UTSA answered again with – who else? – Rowe, who buried a three to bring UTSA to within one. After a couple of timeouts with 31 seconds left, the Lopes made their last costly mistake, as Jeffries turned it over on an errant pass.

The Roadrunners gained possession, put the ball in Rowe’s hands, and the 6-foot-2 native of Canada drew a foul from Holly Griffiths. Rowe sank both freebies with seven seconds left to give the Roadrunners the lead and, ultimately, their most satisfying victory of the season.

UTSA pulled off the comeback despite standout center Idara Udo fouling out with 6:49 remaining.

“It was kind of a chess match for awhile with Idara being in foul trouble,” Aston said. “And, just fatigue. You know, we’re not a very deep bunch. We kind of have to mix and match sometimes. You know, I thought they hung in there with it, and we went to the press late.

“Obviously we can’t do that the whole game. I told them when we do it, they got to sell out on it, and they did that.”

Records

Grand Canyon 1-6
UTSA 3-3

Coming up

UNLV at UTSA, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 6:30 p.m.

Notable

Shuffling the starting lineup after a loss on Monday to the Auburn Tigers, the UTSA Roadrunners bounced out to a 28-23 lead at intermission against the Grand Canyon (Ariz.) Lopes at the Hoopfest Women’s Basketball Challenge.

On the last day of the multi-team event in Frisco, in the DFW area, the Roadrunners installed guard Jayda Holiman into the starting lineup, and Holiman responded with 12 points and eight rebounds. She knocked down four three pointers for her second straight game in double figures.

Damara Allen also contributed 12 points and six rebounds. Allen, a sophomore from Aurora, Colo., made two of UTSA’s season-high nine triples. In all, the Roadrunners made nine of 15 from beyond the arc to offset 10 threes by the Lopes.

In many ways, point guard Ereauna Hardaway was the glue, producing seven points, four assists and three rebounds in 32 minutes.

Once again, though, Cheyenne Rowe led the Roadrunners with an all-around performance.

She had seven rebounds, a block and a steal in 38 minutes. Hitting five of 12 from the field and two of three from distance, she also sank all eight of her free throws. Notably, she was only nine of 17 at the line coming into the game.

Julia LaMendola connected on five triples and led the Lopes with 21 points. Anisa Jeffries scored 12 and Chloe Mann and Ale’jah Douglas had 11 apiece.

The loss was the Lopes’ sixth of the season, but their 1-6 record is deceiving, in that they’ve dropped games to powers South Carolina and Oregon on the road and to Atlantic Coast Conference entry Cal on a neutral site. South Carolina is the No. 2 team in the nation.

Last year, Grand Canyon finished 32-3 and lost to Baylor in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Records

Grand Canyon 1-6
UTSA 3-3

Coming up

UNLV at UTSA, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 6:30 p.m.

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Defense boosts Auburn women to a 59-42 victory over UTSA

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

UTSA coach Karen Aston said coming into the Hoopfest Women’s Basketball Challenge that the length and athleticism of the Auburn Tigers would be a concern.

Aston was right, as the Tigers from the Southeastern Conference forced 30 turnovers and converted them into 25 points in a 59-42 victory over the Roadrunners in the opener of the three-day, multi-team event at the Comerica Center in Frisco.

The Roadrunners felt good coming into Frisco after winning back-to-back games against regional rivals Texas State and Incarnate Word. But the defending champions in the American Conference were no match for the Tigers.

The Tigers just had too much quickness for the Roadrunners, who never seemed to be able to string together a run because of ball-handling miscues. As a result, they were held to their season low in total points.

Guard Kaitlyn Duhon had four steals and two blocks to spark Auburn on the defensive end. Offensively, guard Mya Petticord scored 14 points. Guard A’riel Jackson added 12 and forward Khady Leye 10 for the Tigers, who won easily despite shooting 39.7 percent.

Guard Jayda Holiman came off the bench to lead the Roadrunners with 14 points. Forward Cheyenne Rowe added 13 points and seven rebounds. Rowe, who entered shooting 54 percent from the field, finished six of 13.

As a team, UTSA was held to 29.2 percent on 14 of 48 shooting. Outside of Rowe, UTSA’s starters were all held down below their averages. Damara Allen had six points and Ereauna Hardaway and Idara Udo two apiece. Mia Hammonds was scoreless.

First half

The Tigers forced nine turnovers in the first half and converted them into 14 points as they took a 33-24 lead.

Records

Auburn 7-0
UTSA 2-3

Coming up

UTSA vs. Grand Canyon, Ariz., Wednesday, 4 p.m., at Frisco

Notable

With the loss, UTSA extended a long losing streak against opponents from power conferences. The Roadrunners have dropped 28 in a row against the majors, including 12 in a row under Aston.

UTSA hasn’t won a game against a power conference foe since 2010 when the Roadrunners beat the Kansas State Wildcats in San Antonio.

Auburn is now 2-0 against UTSA in the all-time series. In the only other meeting between the schools, the Tigers defeated the Roadrunners 73-50 on Dec. 30, 2001 in San Diego.

Quotable

“There’s things we consistently do in practice, that, I’ve been telling them, it’s not going to translate,” UTSA coach Karen Aston told Neal Raphael on the team’s radio broadcast. “You know, it’s not going to translate against good competition, and we continue to do it. Until we can take care of the ball better and slow down a little offensively, and handle the ball and do the tough things, then I think we’re going to get the same results.”

UTSA women block out the noise and roll past Incarnate Word

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Cheyenne Rowe. UTSA women's basketball beat Incarnate Word 74-57 on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025, at UIW. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Cheyenne Rowe reached a career-high in scoring for the second straight game, producing 17 points in a 74-57 victory over Incarnate Word. She hit seven for 11 from the field, hiking her shooting percentage to a team-leading 54 percent. — Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

For the players and coaches on both benches, and for all the late-arriving fans walking into the McDermott Convocation Center on Wednesday night, the first thing that came to mind was the noise.

The University of the Incarnate Word band, rocking and rolling in the north west corner of the gymnasium, was loud. On top of that, the piped-in sound booming through the speakers hiked the decibel level a few more notches.

Then, when the 1,138 fans started to feel the emotion of a fast start by the home-team Cardinals, their voices only added to the cacophony.

Idara Udo. UTSA women's basketball beat Incarnate Word 74-57 on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025, at UIW. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Junior center Idara Udo, wearing jersey No. 25, finished with 11 points and 13 rebounds. She grabbed six boards off the offensive glass. – Photo by Joe Alexander

The visiting UTSA Roadrunners, to their credit, kept their cool.

Steadying themselves after the Cardinals drained three 3-point baskets in the first three minutes, the Roadrunners gradually imposed their will on the proceedings and rolled to a 74-57 victory.

“I was really proud of our players,” UTSA coach Karen Aston said. “I thought it was a great atmosphere. I thought they did a great job of getting people in the stands. The band was good. It was a really good basketball atmosphere.”

For the Roadrunners, it was their second straight lopsided victory after winning at home last week by 64-41 against the I-35 rival Texas State Bobcats.

“Our players are learning kind of on the job right now,” Aston said. “I thought they handled it really well. Really well. I thought we played hard. We’ve got lots to work on, but that’s what we’re doing this week.”

Amped with emotion to play the defending champions in the American Conference, the Cardinals (1-3) kept the game close for one quarter until the Roadrunners (2-2) started to play with a little more aggression on the defensive end.

UTSA led 21-20 going into the second period and then blitzed UIW 20-9 in the next 10 minutes behind a scoring and rebounding binge from starting frontcourt players Cheyenne Rowe and Idara Udo.

Up by 12 at halftime, the Roadrunners never allowed the Cardinals to get closer than nine the rest of the way.

Jhasmin Player. UTSA women's basketball beat Incarnate Word 74-57 on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025, at UIW. - Photo by Joe Alexander

First-year UIW coach Jhasmin Player said it was an “incredible’ feeling to work against one of her long-time confidants, veteran UTSA head coach Karen Aston. – Photo by Joe Alexander

First-year UIW coach Jhasmin Player was still emotional after the game, talking about how it felt “incredible” to go up against one of her long-time basketball mentors.

As a high school standout in Bay City some 20 years ago, Player met Aston as a University of Texas assistant who was trying to recruit her to play for the Longhorns.

Though Player eventually signed with Baylor, their paths crossed a few years later when Aston joined head coach Kim Mulkey’s staff in Waco for one season.

The Lady Bears went 26-9 and reached the NCAA tournament that year. Player said it was incredible to work her fourth game as a college head coach against Aston, who has won 351 games in a little more than 17 seasons.

“Coaching against Karen was just one of the most incredible things,” Player said. “She is one of my favorite coaches ever. She was one of my favorite assistants (when I played). Now, as a head coach, she’s one I follow really closely because I always had such a high respect for her.

“I thought the atmosphere in here was great tonight. I think this is exactly what it needs to be all the time. I’m glad our kids at least gave us one really great quarter of competitive basketball. That first quarter was fun.”

A number of UTSA players made it extremely tough for UIW to sustain any momentum.

Adriana Robles. UTSA women's basketball beat Incarnate Word 74-57 on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025, at UIW. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Freshman Adriana Robles scored 11 points off the bench on four of five shooting from the field. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Rowe, who along with Udo was playing with foul trouble much of the second half, led the Roadrunners with a career-high 17 points. The ball often found her as the shot clock was winding down, but she almost always answered, hitting seven of 11 from the field.

Udo, for her part, produced 11 points and 13 rebounds. Senior guard Ereauna Hardaway, a UTSA newcomer, had 15 points, four rebounds and three assists in her best performance for the Roadrunners.

Not to be outdone, freshman guard Adriana Robles had 11 points and four assists. She hit four of five from the field.

Hardaway said it felt great to get a win.

“I felt like it was a great atmosphere,” she said. “It reminded me of when I was in high school. It’s not a big gym but the fans made it seem like there were a lot of people here. So it was a great atmosphere, a cross-town rivalry.”

In winning decisively, the Roadrunners reached their season-high in points. They out-rebounded the Cardinals 43-22 and pounded the ball into a zone defense to draw contact, which yielded 19 points at the line in 26 attempts.

“We’re building our chemistry,” Hardaway said. “As we continue to play, we’re learning to play with each other, building chemistry and gaining confidence in each other.”

Further underscoring the improvement of the offense, UTSA shot a season-high 52.1 percent from the field. If the Roadrunners could have cut down on a few of their 18 turnovers, they could have easily scored in the 80s.

“It’s practice translating into games,” Hardaway said. “It’s putting the work in, in practice and executing on the offensive end and trusting in our teammates to know what to do.”

Guard Destiny Whitaker led the Cardinals with 18 points and six rebounds. She hit three 3-pointers, all in the first quarter, including one from halfcourt at the first period buzzer. Jorja Elliott had 11 points, three rebounds and three assists.

Records

UTSA 2-2
UIW 1-3

Coming up

UTSA vs. Auburn, Monday, at Frisco, 4 p.m.
UTSA vs. Grand Canyon, Wednesday, at Frisco, 4 p.m.

Notable

Cardinals guard Madison Cockrell, a former player with the Roadrunners, did not dress out. She sat out with an injury after starting for UIW in its first three games.

UTSA forward Cheyenne Rowe has hit career highs in scoring in each of her last two games. She scored 16 against Texas State and added 17 against UIW. In her third season with the Roadrunners, Rowe is shooting 54 percent from the field.

Roadrunners coach Karen Aston said earlier this week that Rowe’s work in the summer always pays dividends

“One of my favorite things to talk about is … the time that they use in the summer, it all comes to light in the winter time,” Aston said, “and I think she’s a reflection of that. She always takes advantage of summer to make sure that her shooting is consistent, and her confidence is consistent with that.”

Recruiting

UTSA on Wednesday announced the signing guard Rihyana Kinsey from Waco La Vega. Previously, the Roadrunners signed forward-center Amaya McDonald from Braswell High School in Aubrey. McDonald’s hometown is Shreveport, La. Both are expected to join the team for the 2026-27 season.

Ereauna Hardaway. UTSA women's basketball beat Incarnate Word 74-57 on Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025, at UIW. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Newcomer Ereauna Hardaway, a transfer from North Texas, played her best game for the Roadrunners with 15 points, four rebounds and three assists. – Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA women will see a few familiar faces tonight at UIW

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Six days after the UTSA women’s basketball team defeated one regional rival, it’ll play another tonight, traveling into the central sector of San Antonio to face the University of the Incarnate Word Cardinals.

Karen Aston. UTSA beat Florida Atlantic 60-52 on Senior Day to clinch the American Athletic Conference regular-season title on Saturday, March 1, 2025, at the Convocation Center.

Fifth-year UTSA coach Karen Aston says it’s important to schedule against UIW, the only other NCAA Division I women’s program in the city. – File photo by Joe Alexander

The Roadrunners and the Cardinals (both 1-2) will play at the McDermott Convocation Center on the UIW campus. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.

Coming off last week’s 64-41 victory at home over the San Marcos-based Texas State Bobcats, the Roadrunners will see a few familiar faces when they face the Cardinals for the sixth time in the series between San Antonio’s two NCAA Division I women’s programs.

Cardinals guard Madison Cockrell played two years at UTSA to start her college career before entering the transfer portal after the 2023-24 season. After playing 27 games at UIW last year, the Dallas native has started all three games this season as a senior for first-year Cardinals head coach Jhasmin Player.

Player was a four-year standout at Baylor University, where she played as a sophomore in 2006-07 under a Kim Mulkey-led coaching staff that included Karen Aston, who is now the head coach in her fifth year with the Roadrunners.

“It’s crazy,” Aston said on her Monday teleconference call. “I’ve kind of forgot about that. She seems like such a (coaching) peer to me. You know, she’s been in the profession for quite some time. And she handles her coaching abilities just like she did when she was a player.

“I recruited her (as an assistant at Texas) and then had the privilege … to coach her for one year (at Baylor). She was a delight. She was a delight to coach. A delight to be around. A very positive light on our profession. And someone I think has a very, very bright future as a head coach.”

The Roadrunners and Cardinals started women’s basketball programs in the early 1980s.

While UIW opened in 1980 in the NAIA, the Roadrunners debuted in 1981 as an NCAA Division I independent. In their 45th season, they’ve established themselves as one of the top teams in the American Conference, having played in two straight national postseason tournaments.

They won the American’s regular-season title last season.

UIW, meanwhile, played initially in the NAIA before moving up to NCAA Division II in the 1990s. In 2012, the Cardinals accepted an invitation to NCAA Division I and the Southland Conference, becoming eligible for national and SLC tournaments in 2017-18.

Head to head, the Cardinals and the Roadrunners have played five times, with UTSA winning three and UIW two.

Both are undefeated at home against the other. In December of 2022, Aston’s Roadrunners led by 11 points in the third quarter and by eight entering the fourth on the home floor of the Cardinals, only to get beat, 56-53.

Madison Cockrell. Texas State beat UTSA 65-57 in overtime in women's basketball on Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Dallas native Madison Cockrell, formerly of UTSA, is now a starter for the UIW Cardinals. Cockrell played two seasons at UTSA before entering the transfer portal in 2024. – File photo by Joe Alexander

“I know that it’s going to be a very challenging game at UIW,” Aston said. “It’s a rivalry-type game … We’ve experienced not so good things on the road (at UIW) before. So we’ll try to jog our players’ memory if they were there. If they weren’t, we’ll try to let ‘em know, it’s not an easy place to play. And then we’ll take another deep breath and get ready for the two games in Dallas.”

The Roadrunners will play in DFW-area Frisco next week. They’ll take on Auburn on Monday and Grand Canyon (Ariz.) on Wednesday at the Hoopfest Women’s Basketball Challenge. As for the matchup against UIW, Aston said it’s important to play the only other Division I program in the city.

“I think the (games) are natural, for us to play each other and benefit from high attendance … from community support,” Aston said. “I think that both Jhasmin and I are both trying to gain community support for our programs and really, to be honest with you, to gain support for women’s basketball in the city.”

Records

UTSA 1-2
UIW 1-2

Coming up

UTSA vs. Auburn, Monday, at Frisco, 4 p.m.
UTSA vs. Grand Canyon, Wednesday, at Frisco, 4 p.m.

UTSA women open at home with a 64-41 rout of Texas State

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Mia Hammonds. UTSA women's basketball beat Texas State 64-41 on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Six-foot-three sophomore Mia Hammonds scored 14 of her career-high 16 points in the first half. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Mia Hammonds led a rejuvenated offense in the first half. Cheyenne Rowe lit up the scoreboard after intermission.

On top of all that, the UTSA women played suffocating defense for most of the 40 minutes as the Roadrunners routed the Texas State Bobcats 64-41 in their home opener Thursday night at the Convocation Center.

Rowe, a 6-2 senior forward, scored 15 of her 16 points after intermission, as the defending champions in the American Conference cruised to their first win of the season and the 350th in the career of Coach Karen Aston.

Banners honoring the accomplishments of UTSA's 2024-25 women's basketball team are unfurled on Thursday night at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Banners honoring the accomplishments of UTSA’s 2024-25 women’s basketball team are unfurled on Thursday night at the Convocation Center. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Rowe had ample help from Hammonds, a 6-3 sophomore from Steele, who had 14 of her career-high 16 in the first half.

Hammonds sparked the attack in the first two quarters with six of seven shooting.

She finished with the best game of her career as UTSA bounced back from two road losses last week, at Texas Tech and Houston.

The road trip was a tough one. In Lubbock, against Texas Tech, UTSA took a 79-52 pounding last Thursday night.

On Saturday in Houston, the Roadrunners played well defensively but fell short, 52-48, because of an offense that misfired all night.

“I think it’s just good to be back home,” Aston said. “We haven’t had a true home game. We started out on the road, and it was a long week last week.

“We were all very excited about being home. We like playing here, so it was a fun day for us.”

Jordyn Jenkins (left) and Nina De Leon Negron, both members of last season's UTSA women's basketball team, watch as the 2024-25 American Conference championship banner is unfurled on Thursday at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Jordyn Jenkins (left) and Nina De Leon Negron, both members of last season’s championship team, watch as the 2024-25 American Conference championship banner is unfurled at the Convocation Center. – Photo by Joe Alexander

The day held meaning on multiple levels.

Not only was it a career milestone for Aston and a coming out of sorts for a talented young player in Hammonds, it also gave the team a boost at a critical juncture, with the next three games away from home.

In addition, it lent some substance to pre-game festivities staged to commemorate last season’s 26-5 tour de force.

Free-flowing nostalgia

At the beginning of the evening, with 1,221 fans in the stands, the nostalgia flowed freely.

A video played on the big screen showing highlights of the UTSA’s run to the 2024-25 American Conference women’s basketball title.

To cap off the ceremony, banners were unfurled in the rafters, one of them commemorating the title and the other noting the program’s trip to the Women’s Basketball Invitational Tournament.

As the current crop of UTSA players watched, something obviously was stirring inside them.

Karen Aston. UTSA women's basketball beat Texas State 64-41 on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Coach Karen Aston hit a milestone with the 350th victory of her career. — Photo by Joe Alexander

“I almost cried,” Rowe said. “That was nice. That was a moment you just can’t get normally. Being a player, that’s all you want.”

A few possessions into the game, guard Damara Allen drained a three pointer. Then, another.

Her teammate, Hammonds, sank a couple of easy layups, one on a sweet assist from Rowe on a back-cut to the basket.

With former UTSA stars Jordyn Jenkins and Nina De Leon Negron seated at courtside, Hammonds kept on scoring, hitting one three out of the corner and once racing on the dribble past a couple of Texas State defenders to score a layup.

“Coast to coast,” the public address announcer exclaimed.

For the half, the Roadrunners shot 14 of 25 from the field and four of seven from behind the 3-point arc, a dramatic improvement from the team’s first two games of the season.

On the season-opening road trip, UTSA shot a combined 35 for 111 from the field and six for 37 from three.

Against the Bobcats, the Roadrunners’ offense started off hot but cooled off to finish 23 of 47 afield and four of nine at the arc.

Deja Jones, a guard from East Central High School, led Texas State with 11 points against UTSA on Thursday at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Deja Jones, a guard who once played at East Central High School, UTSA and Indiana State, led Texas State with 11 points. – Photo by Joe Alexander

“It was a fun day to celebrate the banner and kind of close the chapter on that moving forward,” Aston said. “I thought we actually played really well, in particular, defensively.

“I was pleased at how we made their shots difficult. On the other hand, we had some really good glimpses offensively and a lot that needed to be looked at.

“We’re just a work in progress on that end because we’ve got a lot of players that haven’t played together, and they’re getting to know each other and where (they) like the ball.

“We had some glimpses that were really good but we obviously have got a lot of work to do.”

Records

Texas State 0-3
UTSA 1-2

Coming up

UTSA at Incarnate Word, Wednesday, 6:30 p.m.

Individuals

Texas State — Forward Deja Jones, who once played at East Central High School and at UTSA in San Antonio, led the Bobcats with 11 points, three rebounds and two assists. Jones was held to five of 22 shooting. Forward Kyra Anderson had 10 points and eight rebounds. Guard Saniya Burks, who was averaging 22 points, was held to seven on three of 12 shooting.

UTSA – Hammonds finished with 16 points on seven of 11 shooting. She also had five rebounds, three blocks and five turnovers. Rowe had 16 on six of eight afield and also produced eight rebounds and four assists. Idara Udo had nine points, nine rebounds and two blocks. Emilia Dannebauer had six points and eight rebounds in 17 minutes.

Cheyenne Rowe. UTSA women's basketball beat Texas State 64-41 on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025, at the Convocation Center. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Cheyenne Rowe scored 15 of her 16 points in the second half. She had the fans on their feet with a flurry of sweet post moves and short jumpers at the end of the third and the beginning of the fourth quarters. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Notable

Opening her 18th year as a head coach, Karen Aston improved to 350-208. Her teams have a 17-game winning streak going at home, dating to the end of the 2023-24 season, including 13-0 last season.

Quotable

Mia Hammonds said having Jordyn Jenkins and Nina De Leon Negron at the game and at team practices served as a boost. “They’ve been a lot of help this week at our practices,” she said. “From being from a winning team last year, like, I just wanted to win for them. I heard them on the sideline. They were talking the whole game.”

Women’s basketball: Houston holds off UTSA, 52-48, in a hectic final minute

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Guard Briana Peguero knocked down a 12-footer off the wing with 14 seconds left to help the Houston Cougars hold off the winless UTSA Roadrunners women, 52-48, Saturday night.

Playing at home in the Fertitta Center, the Cougars didn’t have a great night, largely because the Roadrunners played them so hard.

But the Big 12 Conference program made just enough plays in the final minute to stay undefeated after two games under first-year Coach Matthew Mitchell.

The biggest play of all came after UTSA’s Cheyenne Rowe rebounded a free throw miss and hit a layup to bring the Roadrunners to within two with 39 seconds left. At that juncture, the Cougars called time and set up a play.

Inbounding from the side, they went into a dribble weave at the top of the three-point arc. Kierra Merchant tossed it to Peguero, who was three for 15 from the field at the time, and she promptly drained the shot for the final four-point margin.

UTSA, after a timeout, couldn’t score on two chances. Sophomore Mia Hammonds missed a long three, and freshman Adriana Robles had no choice but to throw one up that was blocked to end the game.

With the loss, the Roadrunners fell to 0-2 after opening the season with two road games against power conference opponents.

UTSA, the defending conference champions in the American, took a beating in the opener. The Texas Tech Red Raiders forced 27 turnovers and routed the Roadrunners 79-52 at Lubbock on Thursday night.

With a short turnaround for the second game of the season, the Roadrunners played harder but still made too many mistakes.

In a game they could have won, they led by five points midway through the second quarter and committed too many errors the rest of the way to prevail, even against a team that also seemed to be trying to find itself.

The Roadrunners were a little better in the turnover department than they were in Lubbock — the Roadrunners committed 22 — but they misfired on too many open looks to beat the Cougars.

“Definitely a tough loss,” UTSA coach Karen Aston told Neal Raphael on the team’s radio broadcast. “I think we got a little closer tonight to playing as hard as you have to play at this level. But, we’re a work in progress. We got a lot of things we got to get a lot better at.

“You got to play the games, sometimes, to figure that out. These two games have given us a glimpse of what we need to get better at.”

Merchant carried the Cougars with 21 points, eight rebounds and one assist, which happened to be the one that went to Peguero for the game clincher. Merchant, a two-year Cougars veteran out of Houston’s Westifled High School, hit eight of 18 shots from the field.

As for the supporting performances, Texas A&M transfer Amirah Abdur-Rahim was strong in pulling down 11 rebounds. But she was limited to nine points on four of 12 shooting. Outside of Merchant and Abdur-Rahim, the rest of the Houston squad shot only 10 for 42.

But on the other end, the Roadrunners failed to capitalize, shooting a frustrating 35.6 percent from the field while turning it over 13 times in the first half and nine after intermission.

Aston said the turnovers have been “an issue” for the Roadrunners through the team’s fall training camp. “It’s been a going theme,” the coach said. “We just have to slow down. We’re young. We’re young at the guard position. We have to slow down and not think that everybody has to make a hero play.”

The return of senior point guard Ereauna Hardaway, a transfer and a former three-year starter at North Texas, calmed the team down a little. With Robles starting at the point and Hardaway coming off the bench, the Roadrunners seemed to get better looks at the basket than they did against the Red Raiders.

“I think we were better in a stretch in the second half,” Aston said. “We got a little better. Ereauna is going to help us a lot. I think her coming out after being out for so long, she gave an admirable effort tonight, considering she hasn’t practiced any.

“The more the year goes on, I think she’ll get control of what we need to do, and we’ll get better.”

Forward Idara Udo led the short-handed Roadrunners with 13 points and six rebounds. Rowe had a double double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Meanwhile, guard Damara Allen scored 11. Hardaway, in her UTSA debut, finished with four points, four rebounds and three assists.

Records

Houston 2-0
UTSA 1-1

Coming up

UTSA at Texas State, Thursday, 6:30 p.m.

Notable

With the victory, Houston won its sixth in a row in games against UTSA and improved to 23-1 overall against the Roadrunners.

UTSA hasn’t won a game against a power conference opponent since 2010. The Roadrunners have dropped 27 in a row in that stretch, including 11 straight since Aston took over as coach in the 2021-22 season.

First half

Merchant scored eight of her 14 first-half points in the second quarter as the Cougars rallied from a five-point deficit to tie the Roadrunners, 27-27.

For the second game in a row, turnovers hurt UTSA. The Roadrunners turned it over 13 times in the half. But, unlike their opener at Texas Tech, they shot the ball with more confidence.

Sophomore Damara Allen scored nine to lead the Roadrunners, who shot 41.4 percent from the floor before intermission. Udo and Hammonds closed the half with seven apiece.

Defending champion UTSA women are faced with injury concerns

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The defending conference champion UTSA Roadrunners were happy Tuesday night with the turnout to their annual preseason potluck supper with fans and boosters. In Coach Karen Aston’s first year on campus, she said only about 10 people attended.

Leading into her fifth season, the event has grown, with dozens of people in the stands watching practice and later gathering at tables spread out over one of the side courts at the Convocation Center.

There, they shared laughs, pasta and other assorted home-made dishes.

Clouding an otherwise light mood, a ripple of concern centered on a growing number of injuries leading into Saturday’s home exhibition against Texas A&M-San Antonio, which will be followed by a regular-season opener on Nov. 6 in Lubbock against the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

In an afternoon practice that lasted less than an hour, only eight of 15 players on the roster were active and going through drills on halfcourt offense.

Among those sitting out were young standouts Taylor Ross and Sema Udo, who were both wearing leg braces and walking with the aid of crutches. Another concern is forward Maya Linton, one of the best defensive players in the American.

Aston didn’t want to go into the specifics on the injury situation.

“We’ll make some announcements,” the coach said. “We’ve got some season-ending injuries. So we’ll make probably a collective announcement before our first regular-season game.

“We don’t want to do it right now. We don’t want to disclose the information before we go to Lubbock. But we will do it. We’re not going to try and keep anything from anybody because they’re season ending.”

Junior center Idara Udo was the only starter from last year’s 26-win team to participate in practice on Tuesday.

Others working out were returning players Mia Hammonds, Damara Allen and Emilia Dannebauer, plus transfers Ereauna Hardaway and Jayda Holiman and freshmen Adriana Robles and Sanaa Bean.

Among the other notables sitting out the practice was Cheyenne Rowe, who was wearing a walking boot. Both Rowe and Linton were major contributors on a team that forged a 17-1 record in conference last season.

Starters from last year who have moved on in their careers are Jordyn Jenkins, Nina De Leon Negron and Sidney Love. While both Jenkins and De Leon Negron are pursuing professional careers, Love is now playing for UTSA’s opening-day opponent — Texas Tech.

UTSA women are picked second in the American

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Idara Udo. Top-seeded UTSA lost to ninth-seeded Rice 62-58 in the quarterfinals of the American Athletic Conference women's basketball tournament at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth on Monday, March 10, 2025. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA junior Idara Udo is projected as a first-team all-conference player this season, according to the coaches. – File photo by Joe Alexander

The South Florida Bulls are picked to win, and the defending champion UTSA Roadrunners have been pegged for a second-place finish in the American women’s basketball race, according to the conference’s preseason coaches’ poll.

Preseason Coaches’ Poll
1. South Florida (11) 143
2. UTSA (1) 119
3. Rice (1) 113
4. Temple 107
5. Tulane 104
6. North Texas 95
7. East Carolina 82
8. Tulsa 72
9. Memphis 52
10. Charlotte 50
11. UAB 38
12. Wichita State 23
13. Florida Atlantic 16

Preseason projections/individuals
Player of the Year – Carla Brito, Sr., F, South Florida

All-Conference First Team – Dominique Ennis, Sr., G, Rice; Carla Brito, Sr., F, South Florida*; L’or Mputu, Gr., F, South Florida; Kaylah Turner, Jr., G, Temple; Idara Udo, Jr., F, UTSA.

All-Conference Second Team – Aniah Alexis, So., G, Rice; Victoria Flores, Jr., G, Rice; Amira Mabry, Sr., F, Tulane; Kendall Sneed, So., G, Tulane.

New-look UTSA women reload after a championship season

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UTSA's Ereauna Hardaway is a senior point guard from Jonesboro, Ark., and North Texas. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA newcomer Ereauna Hardaway is a senior point guard from Jonesboro, Ark. She played three seasons at North Texas, averaging 10 points and 3.5 assists last year as a junior. – Photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

With Jordyn Jenkins and Nina De Leon Negron pursuing professional basketball careers, and with Sidney Love now suiting up for the Texas Tech Red Raiders, the UTSA women are forging ahead without the leadership core that led the team to a school-record 26 wins and a regular-season conference championship last season.

Karen Aston. UTSA beat Florida Atlantic 60-52 on Senior Day to clinch the American Athletic Conference regular-season title on Saturday, March 1, 2025, at the Convocation Center.

Fifth-year UTSA coach Karen Aston signed a contract extension through 2030 after leading the Roadrunners to the American Conference regular-season title. – File photo by Joe Alexander

“We’ll be different,” fifth-year UTSA coach Karen Aston said Wednesday. “We have a different team.” But, that’s not to say the Roadrunners won’t be good again. Far from it.

Nine players return, mixing with six newcomers, on the 15-player roster. The Roadrunners will have some experience to lean on with four seniors, four juniors and four sophomores, including promising returning wing players Mia Hammonds and Damara Allen.

They’ll also have athleticism and length, with four players listed at either 6-foot-4 or 6-3.

Returning starters include center Idara Udo and forward Maya Linton. Forwards Cheyenne Rowe and Nyayongah Gony also figure to be in the rotation, though the multi-skilled, 6-4 Gony is working her way back from a knee injury that limited her to 12 games last season.

Newcomers to watch are senior transfer Ereauna Hardaway and freshman Adriana Robles, who split time at Wednesday’s workout running the team at point guard.

Freshman forward Sema Udo, Idara’s younger sister, is also an athlete that appears to have skills and athleticism to make an immediate contribution.

“I love all the newcomers,” Aston said. “But it is really a meshing process. It’s going to take some time.”

The Roadrunners will face a challenging early schedule. They’ll play four power conference programs, including Texas Tech, Houston, Auburn and Baylor. They’ll also play three teams — Grand Canyon, Baylor and Columbia — that reached the NCAA tournament last year.

UTSA finished 26-5 last season, including 17-1 in the American Conference. The Roadrunners registered a 13-0 record at home. Jenkins was the Player of the Year in the American, while De Leon Negron and Love supplied steady leadership as the starting backcourt.

Taking a 26-3 record into the postseason, the Roadrunners lost to Rice in the American tournament opener and then fell on the road at Gonzaga in the first round of the Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament.

UTSA's Sema Udo is a freshman forward from Plano East High School. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA’s Sema Udo, the younger sister of junior center Idara Udo, is a freshman forward from Plano East High School. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Aston has put her players through three extended practices as they ramp up preparations for the Nov. 6 opener at Texas Tech.

A few injuries and illnesses have held the Roadrunners back recently, the most notable being a lower left leg injury to promising sophomore forward Taylor Ross. Aston said Ross’ availability is expected to be clarified in a few weeks.

Guard Siena Guttadauro is new mother, having given birth to a son, Dante, on July 24. She played in just five games last season before learning that she was pregnant, according to a story by Sean Cartell on the UTSA athletics website.

Aston said it’s good to have the native Californian back on the team but cautioned that “it’ll be awhile” before she is ready to play.

UTSA roster

x-Sema Udo, 6-0 freshman forward
Siena Guttadauro, 5-6 redshirt junior guard
x-Ereauna Hardaway, 5-8 senior point guard
x-Saher Alizada, 5-10 junior point guard
Damara Allen, 5-10 sophomore guard
Mia Hammonds, 6-3 sophomore guard
Nyayongah Gony, 6-4 redshirt senior forward
x-Sanaa Bean, 6-3 freshman forward
x-Jayda Holiman, 5-6 junior point guard
Taylor Ross, 6-1 sophomore forward
x-Adriana Robles, 5-5 freshman point guard
Maya Linton, 5-11 senior guard
Cheyenne Rowe, 6-2 senior forward
Idara Udo, 6-1 junior forward
Emilia Dannebaurer, 6-4 sophomore forward/center

x-newcomers

Notable

The UTSA women will participate in Rowdy Jam on Oct. 16 at the Convocation Center. It’ll be the fans’ first opportunity to see the UTSA women and men on the court.

The event starts at 7 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Cupid, the Linedance King is scheduled to perform.

On Oct. 25, the women will host Texas A&M-San Antonio in an exhibition, followed on the same day by the men against Incarnate Word. The women’s game is set for 1 p.m., followed by the men at 3:30.

The season opener for the women is set for Nov. 6 at Texas Tech. Love, a three-year UTSA starter, transferred to play for the Big 12 Red Raiders last summer.

UTSA had four guards transfer out of the program, including Love, Aysia Proctor (to North Texas), Alexis Parker (to Lamar) and Emma Lucio (Southeastern Louisiana).

UTSA's Adriana Robles is a freshman point guard from Arecibob, Puerto Rico, and Fossil Ridge High School. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Freshman Adriana Robles has played internationally for her native Puerto Rico and emerged as a standout at Fort Worth’s Fossil Ridge High School. – Photo by Joe Alexander