STEPHENVILLE, Texas (Interstat) — Tarleton State used a fast start and a steady closing kick to beat Arkansas-Pine Bluff 66-47 in a women’s NCAA Division I basketball game Wednesday at Wisdom Gym. The Texans improved to 1-0 in their season opener, while the Lady Golden Lions fell to 0-2. Tarleton State never trailed after Caroline Lyles opened the scoring with a 3-point jump shot, and the Texans answered every Arkansas-Pine Bluff run with enough offense and free-throw shooting to protect the lead. The game’s most important stretch came early, when Tarleton State turned a close opening into a double-digit cushion, and again in the third quarter, when the Texans pulled away for good.

Lyles’ 3-pointer with 8:17 left in the first quarter started the Tarleton State surge. Stephany Goncalves followed with a layup, and after Indiya Bowen scored inside for Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Olivia Medford hit a pullup jumper. Yasmyn Palmer answered with a turnaround jump shot for the Lady Golden Lions, but Goncalves hit a 3-point stepback and Lyles added another 3 to push the Texans ahead 13-4. Goncalves then made a layup, and although Jailah Pelly converted a three-point play for Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Kristian Hieskill made a 3-pointer to keep Tarleton State in control. Tyra Taylor hit a 3 for the Lady Golden Lions, but Medford closed the first-quarter scoring with a layup and a free throw, giving the Texans a double-digit lead after the opening period.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff tried to climb back in the second quarter behind Pelly and Palmer. Pelly made a layup and a free throw, Palmer scored inside and added two free throws, and Jasmine Davis and Parc Liggins contributed points from the line and the field. But Tarleton State had answers. Lucia Navarro made a layup, Kendall Ford scored twice around the basket, Hieskill added a layup and two free throws, and Lyles made two free throws and a late layup. Medford also made a layup and a free throw as the Texans maintained a comfortable advantage. The Texans’ lead remained in double digits for most of the second quarter. Palmer’s hook shot in the final seconds gave the Lady Golden Lions some momentum, but Tarleton State still carried a 38-29 lead into halftime.

The third quarter is where Tarleton State put the game out of reach. Goncalves repeatedly got to the free-throw line and converted, while Ford made two free throws and Medford added a free throw. The free throws came in bunches and forced Arkansas-Pine Bluff to play catch-up. Arkansas-Pine Bluff got a layup from Palmer and two free throws from Bowen, and Taylor made back-to-back layups later in the period, but the Texans responded each time. Navarro made two layups, Lyles scored inside, and Medford added another layup as Tarleton State stretched its lead to 56-38 by the end of the third quarter. The Lady Golden Lions got a free throw from Ruth Banjoko in the closing seconds of the period, but the deficit remained large.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff did not fade in the fourth. Taylor made a layup, Bowen made two free throws, Palmer scored inside and Pelly made a layup with about five minutes remaining to cut the margin to 58-46. That was as close as the Lady Golden Lions would get. Lyles answered with a layup, Goncalves made a pullup jump shot, Palmer made one free throw and Medford hit a 3-pointer. Lyles added a free throw with 3:11 remaining to complete the scoring and seal the Texans’ 19-point win. Tarleton State’s ability to answer Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s runs, especially with Goncalves and Medford handling the ball and Lyles stretching the defense, proved to be the difference.

Goncalves was Tarleton State’s top star, finishing with 16 points, two rebounds and seven assists in 32 minutes. Her passing helped Tarleton State keep its offense organized against pressure. Medford recorded a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds in 33 minutes. Lyles, a 6-foot guard from Argyle, Texas, and a former Argyle player, added 15 points, six rebounds and two assists in 33 minutes. Ford contributed six points, seven rebounds and four assists in 23 minutes, while Hieskill had seven points, three rebounds, one assist and one block in 28 minutes. Navarro added eight points and four rebounds in 27 minutes for the Texans.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff was led by Palmer, who scored 13 points and grabbed two rebounds in 27 minutes. Pelly added 12 points, three rebounds and one assist in 22 minutes, and Bowen had eight points, three rebounds and one block in 34 minutes. Taylor, a 5-foot-11 forward and former West Memphis High School player, finished with nine points and 14 rebounds in 29 minutes. Taylor’s work on the glass was a bright spot for the Lady Golden Lions. The Lady Golden Lions also received production from Davis and Liggins, but they could not sustain enough offense against Tarleton State’s balanced attack.

Tarleton State’s win came in its first game of the season, while Arkansas-Pine Bluff dropped its second straight to open the year after a loss at Texas A&M. The Lady Golden Lions are scheduled to continue their road swing at Arkansas, while the Texans are set to visit Texas Christian in their next game. Arkansas-Pine Bluff will look to tighten its defense and find more consistent scoring around Palmer, Pelly, Taylor and Bowen. Tarleton State will try to build on a balanced effort that featured three players in double figures and a strong advantage at the free-throw line.

Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s upcoming schedule includes road games at Arkansas, Louisiana-Monroe, Louisiana Tech, Miami, South Florida, Saint Louis and UAB, along with home contests against Texas A&M-Commerce, LeMoyne-Owen and Texas State. Tarleton State is set to visit Texas Christian, Texas, Louisiana-Lafayette, Nicholls State, Texas Southern and Texas A&M, and the Texans will host Sul Ross St., UT Dallas, Texas A&M-Commerce, Schreiner and Texas A&M. Those games will give both teams chances to build on the opening-week lessons from Wednesday’s matchup.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Tarleton State 63, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 57. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Tarleton State with a 91.1 percent probability to win.