EDINBURG, Texas (Interstat) — Payton Hull scored 20 points and Abilene Christian used a dominant early stretch to defeat Texas-Rio Grande Valley 76-59 in a women’s NCAA Division I basketball game on Wednesday at UT Pan Am Field House. The Wildcats improved to 3-0. The Vaqueros dropped to 1-3 before an announced attendance of 603.

Abilene Christian set the tone in the opening quarter, scoring the first basket on Hull’s layup 11 seconds into the game. Texas-Rio Grande Valley answered with Kamryn McLaurin’s two free throws and took a brief 4-2 lead on Janette Aarnio’s layup. The Wildcats then responded with a decisive run. Erin Woodson made a layup, Meredith Mayes scored inside and Hull hit a stepback 3-pointer. Emma Troxell added a 3-pointer, Hull made two free throws and Raimi McCrary connected on a 3-pointer and a layup. After Elise Horne made two free throws for the Vaqueros, McCrary hit another 3-pointer and Hull closed the first-quarter scoring with a layup. The Wildcats held a 24-6 advantage after one period.

The lead continued to grow in the second quarter. Aarnio made a floating jump shot and McLaurin added a stepback jumper for Texas-Rio Grande Valley, but Mayes answered with a driving layup and Woodson scored on a layup. McLaurin made a layup and split two free throws around another Aarnio floating jumper. Hull then hit a stepback 3-pointer, Aarnio made a stepback jumper and McCrary scored on a layup. Riley Grohman added a layup, Erin Maguire made a free throw and Jesslynn Jalomo made two free throws for the Vaqueros. Woodson made two free throws, Troxell made one free throw and Hull scored a layup just before halftime to give the Wildcats a 41-21 cushion at the break.

Texas-Rio Grande Valley tried to rally in the third quarter. McLaurin opened the second half with a layup and free throw, Aarnio hit a pullup jumper and Jessica Borders and Rylie Whitehair each made a 3-pointer. Madison Huhn also connected from deep to cut the deficit. Abilene Christian answered each time. Woodson scored on consecutive layups, Mayes scored inside twice and Hull made a driving layup. Mayes made two free throws and Troxell made one free throw. Natalia Chavez made two free throws late in the quarter after Aarnio made two free throws for the Vaqueros. The Wildcats carried a 62-42 lead into the fourth.

Abilene Christian put the game away in the final quarter. Jessica Borders made a pullup jumper for Texas-Rio Grande Valley, but Woodson answered with a layup, Morrow scored and Hull converted a driving layup to push the lead to 68-44. Borders made two free throws, Mayes made one free throw and Huhn hit a 3-pointer. Woodson made a free throw and McCrary made two free throws. Aarnio made a pullup jumper, Chavez made two free throws and McLaurin made four free throws. Chavez added a layup to make it 76-55. Aarnio scored on a floating jumper and McLaurin made two free throws to account for the final margin.

Hull finished with 20 points, two rebounds, four assists and one block in 28 minutes for the Wildcats. The 5-foot-10 guard from Peaster, Texas, who attended Peaster High School, made an impact from the opening possession. Woodson, a 6-foot guard from Saint Gertrude High School, added 14 points, five rebounds, four assists and two blocks in 26 minutes. Mayes, a 6-foot-3 center from Bixby High School, had 13 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two blocks in 22 minutes. McCrary, a 6-foot forward from Allen High School, scored 12 points in 14 minutes. Troxell, a 6-foot forward from Bushland High School, had five points and three rebounds. Morrow, a 5-foot-8 guard from Arlington High School, finished with two points and three rebounds.

Abilene Christian shot 27 of 58 from the floor, 5 of 21 from 3-point range and 17 of 27 from the free-throw line. The Wildcats had nine assists, eight offensive rebounds, six blocks and 13 turnovers.

McLaurin, a 5-foot-11 guard from Clear Brook, led Texas-Rio Grande Valley with 18 points, two rebounds and one block in 25 minutes. Aarnio, a 5-foot-11 guard from Makelanrinteen Lukio, also scored 18 points and added one rebound, four assists and two blocks in 38 minutes. Lina Fimbo, a 6-foot-3 forward from International School, grabbed 12 rebounds to go with one assist in 25 minutes. Huhn, a 5-foot-9 guard from Carlsbad, scored six points in 15 minutes.

The Vaqueros shot 17 of 50 from the floor, 4 of 16 from beyond the arc and 21 of 25 from the free-throw line. They finished with five assists, seven offensive rebounds, three blocks and 15 turnovers.

Abilene Christian scored 76 points from 76 possessions for an offensive rating of 100.2. Texas-Rio Grande Valley scored 59 points from 70 possessions for an offensive rating of 84.4. Abilene Christian had 13 turnovers to Texas-Rio Grande Valley’s 15. The Wildcats held edges in assists, blocks and shooting percentage. Abilene Christian also had a 27-17 advantage in made field goals and a 17-21 disadvantage in made free throws. The Wildcats never trailed after the opening quarter and led by double digits for the rest of the game.

The victory continued a strong start for Abilene Christian, which previously beat Houston Christian 84-43 on the road and Howard Payne 108-32 at home. Texas-Rio Grande Valley, which opened the season with a 114-47 home win over Arlington Baptist, has dropped three straight, including road losses at Kansas State and South Dakota. Abilene Christian is next scheduled to visit Texas Christian. Texas-Rio Grande Valley is next scheduled to host North Dakota State.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Abilene Christian 69, Texas-Rio Grande Valley 64. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Abilene Christian with a 60.9 percent probability to win.