Feb. 20, 2016

Final Stats | Photo Gallery

By Michael Eldridge | @DFWSportsMike

ARLINGTON, Texas - It was a defensive battle that saw UT Arlington achieve win No. 600 in program history as the Lady Mavericks downed ULM 40-32 on Saturday at College Park Center.

UTA moved to 13-12 overall and 8-7 in the Sun Belt after being victorious on Play 4 Kay night. The Lady Mavs wore pink socks and gear for their cancer awareness game.

The Lady Mavs held the Warhawks (9-16, 3-13) to just nine second-half points, including four in the fourth quarter. UTA shot 35.4 percent from the floor, while ULM hit at just a 22.4-percent clip.

ULM held a two-point advantage at the break as each team struggled to get things going. The Lady Mavs overcame a brief five-point deficit in the second - ULM's largest lead of the game - with a pair of 3-pointers on consecutive trips down the floor.

The Warhawks were unable to produce against UTA's defense in the second half. ULM was just 3-27 shooting, knocking down a lone field goal in the fourth quarter.

Turning point
With a seven-point lead, UTA's defense held the Warhawks scoreless over the final 3:29. The final stretch included three blocks by UTA, including a pair from Rebekah VanDijk.

Key Stats
After turning the ball over 22 times against Louisiana on Thursday, UTA held a 16-10 advantage in points off of turnovers as each team had 17 apiece. ... Following a career-high 14 points on Thursday, Toma Zaleckaite made it back-to-back double-digit scoring nights with a team-high 12. ... The seven total team blocks tied for second best for the season, behind eight achieved on Nov. 20.

Notable
VanDijk, totaling three blocks for a second consecutive game, moved into sixth all-time in blocks in UTA history. VanDijk has 94 in her career and is five short of Tonya Johnson (1988-90) with 99. ... UTA improved to 5-1 in February - its highest number of wins in a month this season to clinch a winning month for the first time this season.

Up next
UTA hits the road for a trip through Arkansas beginning on Thursday at Little Rock. The two-game trip concludes at Arkansas State on Saturday. UTA closes the season with three games at College Park Center beginning with Texas State on March 1.

Quotable
UTA coach Krista Gerlich on the Play 4 Kay game:
"What a great cause. It speaks volumes. I love that the coaches association plays such a vital role in it and they try to make a big impact. There is a challenge to the coaches out there right now and I love that our University gets behind it. We have a closer to home special closer to home cause, the Nancy Baker Memorial Scholarship Fund. Mr. Baker's wife passed away last year. It is important that our kid's can fight for a cause and show support and bring awareness. I was really proud that they stepped up and pledged an amount as well. It is a huge cause and we have all had somebody in our lives affected by it. It is a terrible disease and I am glad that these girls are having an opportunity to make a stand for it right now."

Gerlich on the teams performance:
"I don't care as long as we have more points than the other team. I knew it was going to be tough. Both teams lost a key player. They lost a point guard and we lost a guard, so both are struggling with that chemistry issue. We say all the time, when you are struggling offensively that you need to guard people, and I thought our kids did a really good job in guarding."

Gerlich on UTA achieving win No. 600 in program history:
"It is great to do it on alumni night as well. All of those people that contributed to those 600 wins were here or at least hopefully a lot were here. It is good that we did it on our home crowd and to just be a part of a milestone. These girls will remember that. Whenever this program wins 700, 800 or 900, they are going to remember that they were a part of 600. I am really pleased with that and happy that the alumni got to witness that as well."

Rebekah VanDijk on moving up to sixth in program history for blocks:
"It is nice, I actually didn't know that. It is something I can contribute to the team and on the defensive end it is something that I can do well."

VanDijk on the Play 4 Kay night:
"It is really an honor that we can do this and help others financially. It is just an honor that we get to do this for people."