Black Hills State women's basketball fell to 1-1 on Saturday night against Texas A&M-Kingsville 71-65.
 
Danica Kocer recorded a team-leading 23 points on the night from 15 total attempts in the paint and 9 from beyond the arch. She went 7-15 from the field and 3-9 from three-point range. Kocer also shot 75 percent from the charity stripe as she made six of eight free throws.
 
Morgan Hammerbeck and Kalla Bertram were the other two Yellow Jackets who recorded double-digit points against the Javelinas with 13 and 10, respectively. Hammerbeck reigned in five of her six shots from inside and made one of two three-pointers while Bertram shot four of six from close range.
 
The duo also led the Yellow Jackets with six rebounds on the night that included a team-led total of five defensive boards from Bertram. Hammerbeck recorded three rebounds on offense and defense.
 
TAMUK started the game hot with an eight-point run that forced a BHSU timeout. Shots from Kocer and Haylee Weathersby closed the gap to 11-7, with Kocer tallying eight points down the line to bring the scoreboard to 16-15 in favor of the Yellow Jackets.
 
A Hammerbeck layup gave BHSU their first lead of the night as the first quarter ended with a 19-18 Yellow Jacket lead.
 
The second quarter started with both teams trading shots until consecutive jumpers and a layup from the Javelinas put them up 29-24 at the 5:01 mark. In the next scores, Kocer delivered three scores from the paint to tie the game back up at 29-all. The teams exchanged scoring plays to go into halftime with TAMUK up 34-33.
 
Hammerbeck reintroduced the Yellow Jackets with a three and a basket from the paint that gave BHSU the lead back at 38-34. BHSU stayed hot as an Engesser long-range bucket and a fast-break layup courtesy of Hammerbeck maintained the lead.
 
The Javelinas went on to score seven uninterrupted to tie the game at 43-43 with under five minutes in the third, eventually taking the lead on a three-point play. With both teams trading scores, the game went right back to a one-point Javelina lead at 51-50 heading into the fourth.
 
Both teams locked horns once again as the score was tied 62-62 with 3:21 left in the game. An eight-point run from TAMUK gave them the 70-62 lead and handed the Yellow Jackets only 61 seconds on the clock to close the gap. The Yellow Jackets put up multiple shots in the final minute but could not connect from deep down the stretch.
 
Up Next
Women's basketball is slated for two more non-conference games next week against the UMary Marauders on Wednesday, Nov. 16 at 6 p.m., following that with a matchup against the Gophers of Minot State on Thursday, Nov. 17 at 6:30 p.m.