ALAMOSA, Colo. – For the second-consecutive game to open the 2014-15 season, McMurry University women's basketball team went to overtime, but this time came away with a 62-58 victory over Adams State University. After the heartbreaking OT loss last Saturday (to Texas A&M-Commerce) in the season opener, the win gave War Hawks' (1-1) coach William Milton his first collegiate coaching victory.
 
"First and foremost, I want to thank the girls for playing so hard and never quitting," Milton said. "Even down before the end of regulation, they never quit; they kept going, possession-by-possession."
 
The Grizzlies (0-3) clawed their way to a 10-2 lead within the first seven minutes of the game (after neither team scored a point for the first four-and-one-half minutes of the period). McM closed the half with a 20-11 run of its own and carried a 22-21 cushion into the halftime locker room.
 
The tightly-contested game stayed close throughout the second stanza, as well. McMurry's largest advantage was six points – 44-38 – after a Taylor Neal jumper. McM held serve much of the half, with either a lead or remaining tied (the score was knotted six times in the segment).
 
A three-point play by ASU's Mariah Gonzales with 1:41 left on the game clock gave the Grizzlies their first lead, 49-48, since the 15:40 juncture of the second half.
 
After a foul by Adams State, McM's Taylor Russell converted one of two free throws with 1:39 left to square matters at 49-49.  But a trey by Desiree Anderson gave Adams State the upper hand once again, 52-49, with 1:29 to go.
 
On its next possession, the War Hawks had a dominating sequence that – while frustrating no doubt at the time – worked out well in the end. McMurry had four missed shot attempts in a row, but also managed four offensive rebounds on each miss to retain possession as the clock ticked down.
 
With 28 seconds left on the game clock, sophomore Haley Welch drained a shot from beyond the arc, thanks to a pass from Adijatu Disu, that tied the game at 52-52 and sent McMurry to its second-consecutive extra-time game.
 
In overtime, there was still nothing resolved by the 2:01 mark when an Anderson layup evened the score at 58-58.
 
McMurry took control for good on its next trip down the floor on a Disu layup with 1:47 left. It would be the final field goal of the game for either team, with McM adding a pair of Neal free throws for the 62-58 final score.
 
Neal had her second-straight double-double as a War Hawk, as well. Neal, a sophomore from Brady, Texas, poured in 17 points and corralled 12 rebounds. She was a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line, as the War Hawks hit 20-of-22 from the charity stripe as a unit.
 
Disu shared team high-point honors at 17, making good on 6-of-11 from the field. Disu narrowly missed a double-double of her own, grabbing nine rebounds.
 
"It's a true testament to the kind of people and players they are," Milton said of his dynamic duo of Neal and Disu. "They played their role tonight and it just so happened to stick out across the board.
 
"It was truly a team effort."
 
Tayler Boroson was Milton's third player in double-digit scoring with 10 points.
 
Welch finished with nine points and five boards. Russell added six caroms of her own, as the War Hawks out-rebounded the Grizzlies by a 44-32 margin for the night.
 
"In every coach's career, the first is always the sweetest," Milton surmised. "It was a win for us. Our team's 'three P's': stay positive, stay in the present and stay with our process. The first win of my career is just a part of the process.
 
"I'm just blessed to be able to lead such a great group of young women and represent McMurry University."