FULLERTON, CA - Chrystal Ngawuchu scored a season high 17 points Tuesday night - the second night of a back-to-back in Cali - but Texas Wesleyan (5-7) fell just short, 68-63 against Hope International University (9-3) one night after taking the nation's No. 1 team, Vanguard, to overtime.

Ngawuchu hit eight of her 11 shots from the floor and pulled in 10 rebounds - her first double-double, which included six on the offensive glass. The effort was part of TXWES' 16 offensive boards production that helped the team shoot 47 percent, 56 percent from inside the three-point line. Adrianna Davis collected three offensive rebounds.

Down 12-9 late in the first quarter, Texas Wesleyan scored six straight to take the lead including good buckets from Kyla Grant, Karah Sicurella and Lorian Benjamin. Hope scored the next seven points to go up by four. The Lady Rams compiled an 8-0 run to regain the lead 28-24 with 3:28 to play in the first half, again four different players scoring (Evie Whorley, Ngawuchu, Grant and Jordan Brightwell). The game of runs continued in the third when Hope scored eight in a row to build a 40-35 advantage with 4:26 left to go in the third frame.

In the final three minutes, TXWES made a furious charge. Trailing 62-57, Sicurella earned a trip to the free throw line, where she sunk both. Off a turnover, Lorian Benjamin got an easy bucket to cut the deficit to one, 62-61 with 2:32 to go. A foul put Ngawuchu to the line, where she hit 1-of-2 to tie the game, 1:44 on the clock. After another missed three by the home side, Lexi Burns gathered in a Nicole Gleason missed three to earn a trip to the line, where she hit one of two to give the Lady Rams the one point edge with 1:04 to play. 

That's where the run ended. Texas Wesleyan missed its final three shots, Hope International sank all six of their free throws and just like that - the fifth loss for the Rams this season by seven points or less. 

Nicole Gleason scored six points, but contributed in other ways with season high's in rebounds (nine) and steals (five). Whorley scored 12 on 4-of-5 shooting, while Benjamin was the third double-digit scorer with 10 points (season high), four rebounds, three assists and three steals. 

WHAT'S NEXT
After a near California sweep, the Lady Rams will head home for the holidays to get healthy and prepared for the resuming of conference play at Oklahoma Panhandle State on Thursday January 3. Tuesday night was the team's 11th game away from home, compared to just four games in Fort Worth. Starting January 8 - the team's next home game against Southwest Assemblies of God - the Lady Rams will split their final 16 games with eight at home and eight on the road.