DENTON, Texas (Nov. 4, 2017) - Texas Woman's University outscored University of North Texas in two quarters while leading for the majority of the contest and had three Pioneers score in double-digits but fell, 69-66, to the Division I opponent Saturday afternoon inside The Super Pit.
 
KJ Stastny scored a team-high 12 points, Bri'Anna Gray had 11 and Grace Mitchell added 10. Mitchell grabbed seven rebounds, and Alexis Nezianya corralled six. TWU was 21-of-51 (41 percent) from the floor compared to UNT who went 22-of-63 (40 percent). The Mean Green outrebounded the Pioneers, 49-to-35.
 
The Pioneers led by as many as five in the fourth quarter and were up 63-62 on a score by Alexis Nezianya in the paint with 3:13 to play. A layup and three-pointer by UNT put the Mean Green up by four with just under two minutes remaining before Stastny drilled a three from the left baseline to make it a one-point game with 15 ticks on the clock.
 
A Mean Green timeout advanced the ball to half court, and the tight Pioneer defense forced UNT into calling two more timeouts. TWU fouled and the Mean Green hit one-of-two from the line for a two-point advantage. The Pioneers pushed the ball up the court but committed a turnover with seven seconds on the clock. UNT then hit a free throw to go up three before TWU forced a jump ball, but the possession arrow pointed to the home team with less than a second left for the Mean Green win.
 
In the first quarter, Grace Mitchell connected on a three from the top of the key to put the Pioneers up 7-2, and spin move in the paint by Stastny kept TWU ahead by five. A three from the right wing and a jumper from short corner by Ma'K'La Woods made it 17-12 with two minutes left in the period.
 
The Mean Green pulled ahead 19-18 in the second period before Kara Mitchell took it back with a steal and two free throws. Gray drained a three from the top and took a no-look pass from Stastny in the lane for a 27-24 TWU advantage at the 5:53 mark. Whitney Apari banked in a jumper and Woods hit a freebie to put the Pioneers up six.
 
A layup by Gray and free throws by Nezianya and Grace Mitchell handed TWU a 46-40 edge in the third quarter with 3:44 to play, but a 7-0 UNT run gave the home team a 47-46 advantage. A fast break layup from Woods on a pass from Gray gave the Pioneers their last bucket of the period to pull within 51-49, and a last second shot by Stastny made it a one-point game heading into the final quarter.
 
Head Coach Beth Jillson said, "It was a competitive game. I'm proud of our relentless effort, energy and toughness for 40 minutes. We had a very balanced scoring attack with a lot of different players stepping up and contributing. We are looking forward to opening our season on the road next week against a very good St. Mary's team."
 
The Pioneers begin the regular season at the TexAnn Tip-Off Classic next week by facing St. Mary's Friday at noon and Western State Saturday at noon.