NEW ORLEANS – The Texas State women's basketball team (14-17, 9-9 Sun Belt) could not overcome a tough first quarter against the South Alabama Jaguars (22-9, 9-9 Sun Belt) and fell 68-67 in the second round of the 2019 Sun Belt Conference Championship on Wednesday afternoon inside Lakefront Arena.

"This is a tough loss," head coach Zenarae Antoine said. "It is tough especially for the senior group. We got off to a bad start in the first quarter. It does not matter that we won the second, third and fourth quarter because we were so far down after the first."

Senior guard Toshua Leavitt scored a game-high 24 points and grabbed six rebounds. The Nixa, Mo., native ended her prolific career with 1,542 career points and 363 career made 3-pointers. Her scoring output ranks ninth in school history, while her proficiency from beyond the arc established the high-water mark for both the Texas State program and the Sun Belt Conference.

Freshman forward Da'Nasia Hood scored 15 points off the Bobcat bench. She converted 4-of-5 3-point attempts and pulled down four rebounds in 24 minutes of action. Junior guard Brooke Holle scored 10 points in 36 minutes of run.

South Alabama was led by junior guard Shaforia Kines. She scored 21 points on 5-of-10 shooting from behind the 3-point line. First team All-Sun Belt sophomore center Antoinette Lewis tallied 12 points and nine rebounds for the Jags, while freshman guard Devyn Lowe scored 13 points off the bench.

As a team, South Alabama dominated the second chance opportunities. USA scored 23 points on 14 offensive rebounds, compared to nine points scored on 14 offensive boards for TXST.

Texas State crawled out of the gate in the first quarter and fell behind 23-10 after the first 10 minutes of play. The Jaguars shot 9-of-19 (47.4 percent) in the opening frame, while the Bobcats converted 4-of-14 (28.6 percent) attempts. The deficit remained at 13 points (34-21) at the halftime break.

South Alabama received the ball to open the third quarter and promptly scored on a low-block touch from Lewis. Texas State responded with an 11-0 run over the next 2:28 of the third. In the run, freshman guard Kennedy Taylor beat the shot clock with a contested 3-pointer from the left wing. Holle added a corner triple in transition on the following possession before Leavitt canned a deep 3-pointer to pull the Bobcats within four at 36-32.

A pair of free throws from sophomore guard Avionne Alexander willed the Cats to a one-point game at 42-41 with 4:02 to play in the third quarter. The Bobcats managed to get another defensive stop on the ensuing Jaguar possession. The Cats were called for an off-the-ball offensive foul when racing down the floor, aiming for their first lead of the ballgame. The call proved to be pivotal as the Jaguars ended the final 3:55 of the third quarter on a 12-2 run.

Not willing to fold, the Bobcats mounted another furious comeback in the fourth. USA built the lead up to a game-high 16 points with 4:29 to play on a driving layup from Lowe. The Bobcats chipped away at the lead after pounding the offensive glass. The trio of Hood, Holle, and Leavitt combined to score the next 18 Bobcat points to bring the score to 67-64 with 9.6 seconds to play.

USA converted 1-of-2 free throws at the line before Alexander banked in a 3-pointer at the final buzzer. For the second-consecutive season, Texas State was bounced from the Sun Belt tournament in a one-point loss as the game concluded at 68-67 in favor of the Jaguars.

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