DENTON, Texas (Jan. 3) – TWU sophomore center Erin Maxwell came off the bench and recorded her first career double-double to lead the Pioneers to a 63-54 win over Tarleton State on Saturday afternoon at Kitty Magee Arena.  With the victory, TWU improved to 8-5 on the season and 1-1 in the Lone Star Conference.
 
Maxwell was one of three TWU players in double figures in scoring with 12 points. Additionally, the Dallas native also had a game and career-high 13 rebounds.  Seven of her 13 rebounds were on the offensive end.  Sophomore Kenesha Saygo also came off the Pioneers' bench and scored a game-high 16 points while sophomore Emily Spector added 11 points for TWU.  Saygo went perfect 10-for-10 from the free-throw line.
 
"Erin came off the bench and stepped up big for us," said TWU head coach Beth Jillson.  "Defensively, she was physical and altered lot of shots.  Offensively, she did a good job of getting position and capitalizing on her scoring opportunities."
 
The first half was close the entire 20 minutes with seven ties and four lead changes.  Tarleton State led by five points at 3:42 mark but the Pioneers closed out the half on a 7-2 run capped off by a jumper at the buzzer by Maxwell to tie the score at 25 at the break.
 
The second half belonged to the Pioneers as they took the lead seconds into the half and never gave it up.  Spector gave TWU a 30-27 lead with the first three-pointer of the game early in the second half.  The Pioneers continued to build on the lead as they took the game's biggest lead, 48-36, at 8:45 mark.  The TexAnns chipped away to cut the deficit to five points, 56-51, with 1:43 to go in the game.  Senior Barbara-Scott Kolb hit a jumper on the next Pioneers' position to extend the lead to seven and Saygo sealed the win with four straight free-throws.
 
"Our poise and composure was incredible in this game," Jillson said.  "We made some mistakes in this game but we did not allow them to affect us.  Defensively we were good for 40 minutes.  This is a big win and will give us confidence going into next week's games."
 
The Pioneers were outrebounded in the first half 20-17 but finished the game with a 45-34 advantage on the boards.  TWU also outscored the TexAnns 30-26 in the paint and the Pioneers' bench had a 33-18 advantage over the TexAnns' bench.
 
The Pioneers will return to action when they hit the road and head south to Kingsville, TX, on Wednesday, Jan. 7.  TWU will face Texas A&M-Kingsville at 6:00 p.m. in Gil H. Steinke Physical Education Center.