CANYON, Texas (Interstat) — Northeastern State defeated New Mexico Highlands 84-66 on Saturday in a women’s NCAA Division II basketball game at First United Bank Center. Attendance was 215. Northeastern State improved to 1-0, while New Mexico Highlands fell to 0-1. Deyanna Douglas led the RiverHawks with 15 points and 15 rebounds in 22 minutes, adding one assist and one block. E’Niyah Holmes scored 17 points and grabbed four rebounds in 25 minutes. Reese Shirey added 14 points, three rebounds and five assists in 22 minutes, McKenzie Smith scored 12 points with four rebounds and one assist in 27 minutes, and Laykin Moore and Kate Datel contributed key baskets for Northeastern State.

Northeastern State built its lead early and never trailed. Gabrielle Tilley opened the scoring with a layup, and Douglas followed with a layup for a 4-0 lead. Douglas scored twice in the paint during that opening stretch, and Tilley’s early layup gave the RiverHawks the lead for good. Kamalani Anitielu answered with a jumper for the Cowgirls, and Aaliyah Clarke added a layup, but Northeastern State kept pressure on with Douglas layups and free throws from Holmes and Smith. The RiverHawks led 25-18 after the first quarter and stretched the margin to 47-31 at halftime. In the second quarter, Holmes made a jumper and a layup, Douglas added a layup, Shirey hit a 3-pointer and made two free throws, and Holmes closed the half with a layup. That first-half separation proved decisive as New Mexico Highlands could not pull closer than 13 points after halftime.

New Mexico Highlands tried to respond in the third quarter. Aniya Johnson made a jumper, Clarke hit a 3-pointer and added a three-point play at the 8:06 mark to make it 50-39, and Brynn Hargrove made a layup. But Northeastern State answered with a Datel 3-pointer, a Shirey layup and free throws from Holmes. Douglas added a layup late in the third, and the RiverHawks led 68-52 after three quarters. In the fourth, Hannah Bond made a layup and two free throws, Smith made a layup, and Laykin Moore converted a layup and free throw to help Northeastern State maintain control. New Mexico Highlands got a layup from Clarke, a layup from Amya Bekele, and jumpers from Hargrove, but the Cowgirls could not close the gap.

For New Mexico Highlands, Anitielu scored 13 points with two rebounds and three assists in 37 minutes, Maya Barnes scored 12 points with two rebounds in 21 minutes, and Clarke scored 11 points with five rebounds in 28 minutes. Hargrove added nine points, three rebounds and one assist in 33 minutes, Bekele scored seven points with four rebounds in 14 minutes, and Johnson had six points, one rebound and four assists in 27 minutes. Erica McGadney made two first-quarter free throws for New Mexico Highlands. The Cowgirls shot 24 of 60 from the floor, 8 of 22 from 3-point range and 10 of 13 from the free-throw line. They had six offensive rebounds, seven assists and 14 turnovers.

Northeastern State shot 27 of 53 from the floor, 4 of 12 from 3-point range and 26 of 37 from the free-throw line. The RiverHawks had 14 offensive rebounds, 11 assists, two blocks and 11 turnovers. Northeastern State also received an early 3-pointer from Laykin Moore in the first quarter. Northeastern State scored 84 points on 68 possessions and posted an offensive rating of 124.3, while New Mexico Highlands scored 66 points on 74 possessions and finished at 89.0. The RiverHawks next host Southwestern Oklahoma, while the Cowgirls next host Sul Ross State.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Northeastern State 62, New Mexico Highlands 61, and its ELO system gave Northeastern State a 67 percent probability to win. The projection favored the RiverHawks before the game.