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By Michael Eldridge | @DFWSportsMike

ARLINGTON, Texas - Little Rock used a second-half surge to hand UT Arlington its fourth consecutive loss, a 59-55 defeat on Saturday at College Park Center.

The Lady Mavericks (7-10, 2-5 SBC) trimmed a double-digit deficit late in the game to just four points, but it was not enough as the Trojans (6-11, 4-4) stayed hot from the field. Little Rock finished the game shooting 48.9 percent and outscored UTA 33-13 from the bench.

Rebekah VanDijk and Amara Wainwright were the bright spots for UTA. VanDijk earned her fifth double-double of the season with 11 points and 11 boards, while Wainwright led with a team-high 14 points.

Little Rock controlled much of the first half behind its shooting performance. The Trojans built up an early 18-13 advantage after shooting 70 percent (7-10) in the opening quarter. The Lady Mavs chipped into the lead behind 10-14 shooting from the free-throw line in the half. Wainwright knocked down a pair late in the half to send UTA into the break down just 26-24. Wainwright had a game-high eight at the intermission.

After the Trojans jumped to an early six-point advantage in the third, Toma Zaleckaite combined with from VanDijk to tie the game at 32-32. However, Little Rock jumped right back into the lead with a 10-3 run, including a buzzer beating 3-pointer to close the quarter.

The Trojans continued their run well into the fourth quarter, connecting on three 3-pointers that helped put the game away.

Turning point
As UTA grabbed the momentum midway through the third quarter and appeared to find its groove, Little Rock stole it away with a big run. Tied at 32 apiece, Little Rock closed the third quarter on a 9-2 run and sprinted out to a double-digit lead. The run finished at 19-5 before the Lady Mavs could respond with a short offensive burst to close the gap.

Key Stats
UTA was outscored 16-11 in the third quarter, UTA is 0-5 in Sun Belt play when being outscored in the third. … Rebekah VanDijk finished with her sixth consecutive double-digit scoring game. She has had a double-double in three of the last four. … After hitting 10 treys on Thursday against Arkansas State, UTA had just four against the Trojans. ... UTA's eight assists were a low in Sun Belt play.

Notable
Little Rock picked up its fifth straight win over UTA and improved to 5-2 all-time in the series. UTA is 1-3 against LR at home. … The four-game losing streak is the longest for UTA since a seven-game streak in 2013-14.

Up next
UT Arlington hits the road for a season-long five game road trip that sends the Lady Mavs through Louisiana, Georgia and to in-state rival Texas State. The trek begins on Thursday at ULM.

Quotable
UTA coach Krista Gerlich on the team's performance:
"We've just got to keep at it. We're playing well at times and we've got some situations where we've really got to correct. At the same time, I really like our effort. At the end we're giving ourselves a chance to stay in it. We've just got to keep working. There's no quit in us that's fore sure."

Gerlich on the team's performance at the free-throw line:
"We do have to get to the free-throw line and when we there we have to knock them down. We started off slow there because we missed our first three and that kind of sets the tone for us there. We've got to come out ready to focus at the free throw line better."