EDINBURG, TEXAS – The FIU women's basketball team defeated the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley on a buzzer beater from senior Maria Torres with 1.8 seconds left in regulation to come out on top of back-and-forth road battle with the Vaqueros that featured 11 ties and seven lead changes.

The win marks the Panthers' second straight win to open the 2023-24 campaign, while UTRGV fall to 0-2 with the loss.

Down as many as 9-0 early in the first quarter, FIU was able to storm back, in part thanks to the Panthers' leading scorer, Ajae Yoakum (13), who scored the Panthers first seven points after the early deficit.

Mya Kone, Courtney Prenger and Olivia Trice each added 10 points, with Kone going a perfect 8-for-8 from the charity stripe in the contest.

Along with the game winner, Torres put on a show on the defensive side of the ball. Her three steals tied her with junior Tanajah Hayes, who also recorded three takeaways on the night. Hayes would go on to fill up the stat sheet with six points, five assists and three rebounds.

A total 10 Panthers scored on a night where both teams limited the other to a field goal percentage below 40 percent. FIU outrebounded UTRGV 48-35 in the victory and led the points in the paint battle 30-22.

UP NEXT
FIU will play its second consecutive road contest when it heads across the state to Fort Myers to face Florida Gulf Coast in a 7 p.m. ET tipoff on Tuesday, Nov. 14.

The game will be televised on ESPN+.

TICKETS
For more information on FIU Football season and individual tickets, including student ticketing, call 305-FIU-GAME or visit the FIU Athletics Online Ticket Office

SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Instagram (@fiuwbb), Twitter (@FIUWBB), and Facebook (@FIUWBasketball) for all the latest Women's Basketball news.
 
General athletic news can also be found at @FIUSports on Facebook and @FIUAthletics on Twitter and Instagram.