BELTON, Texas – It took gritty play the entire game with clutch shooting as the #2 East Texas Baptist University held off Trinity University, 76-70, in overtime. ETBU trailed by two at halftime before coming back to win the game and open up at 1-0. Trinity was receiving votes in the D3hoops.com preseason poll.

Mallory Stephens was the leading scorer for ETBU with 18 points shooting 50% from the floor with four rebounds. Mollie Dittmar added 13 points and seven rebounds while Bridget Upton had 11 points and five rebounds. TU had four players in double figures as Hailey Coleman had 15 points.

ETBU shot 36.9% from the floor, 33% from beyond the arc, and 79% from the stripe. TU made 50% of their shots but was only 5-of-18 from the three-point line (27.8%) and 65.4% from the free throw line. ETBU out rebounded TU, 40-35, and forced 24 turnovers with 15 steals. Taylor Singled posted five steals along with eight rebounds for ETBU.

Hailey Fieseler made the first bucket of the season to start off the game with a 2-0 lead. Mallory Stephens then hit a three-pointer at the 9:01 mark for a three-point lead, 5-2. TU responded with a 9-2 run and a four-point lead, 11-7. They didn't give up the lead the rest of the first quarter taking a 19-14 lead into the second quarter.

TU moved their led to 10 in the second quarter, 24-14, just a minute in. At the 6:29 mark, Jade Goynes cut the lead to four, 24-20, on a jumper. With five minutes left, TU pushed their lead back to six, 28-22, and made it a 31-24 game with 2:52 left. A 7-0 run by ETBU tied the game at 31 with 21 seconds left on a jumper by Goynes. Upton Brooke Webster, and Grace Stephens all had points in the run. With one second left in the quarter, TU made two free throw attempts to take at two-point lead at the half, 33-31.

In the first four minutes of the third quarter, ETBU went on a 9-42 run for a 40-35 lead. The Stephen sisters put in buckets along with free throws from Webster and Upton for the lead. At the 2:27 mark, Dittmar grabbed an offensive rebound and put it back as ETBU went up 47-42. TU fought back and tied the game at 47 with 1:11 in the quarter. Goynes gave ETBU the lead with 28 seconds left, 49-48, as they headed into the final quarter.

A three-pointer by TU made it 51-49 in their favor which last until the 7:46 mark. Both teams in that two minute time span couldn't score but a Hanna Hudson three-pointer gave ETBU the lead back, 52-51. Upton made it a three-point lead with 6:14 to go and Singleton kept it at three with a jumper at the 4:49 mark. Two free throws by TU with 3:25 left put them back up, 57-56, but two Dittmar free throws a minute later gave the ETBU the lead back by one, 58-57. Mallory Stephens made it a two-point game on a free throw (1:58) but 17 seconds later TU tied it up at 59. In the final two minutes, neither team could score as the game went into overtime tied at 59.

TU hit a three-pointer for a three-piont lead, 62-59, with 4:15 to go. In the next four minutes, ETBU went on a 11-1 run for a seven-point lead, 70-63. Kaia Williams started the run and then Mallory Stephens gave ETUB the lead for good, 63-62, with 3:24 to go. TU did come within three, 70-67, with 55 seconds left, but ETBU went 6-of-8 at the foul line for the six-point win, 76-70.