FORT WORTH, Texas - Sophomore Shawndrika Courtney scored 13 of her 17 points in the first half but it wasn't enough as Texas Wesleyan fell to St. Gregory's, 57-49, Tuesday evening at the Sid Richardson Gymnasium.
  
     "We played really well in the first half," head coach Stacy Francis said. "In the second half we stopped executing. We turned the ball over too much to expect to win."

     St. Gregory's (4-1) opened the game on an 18-10 run, on the strength of eight points by Rhonda McCullar to take an eight-point lead at the 10:47 mark of the first half.

     Texas Wesleyan (2-2) fought back with a 16-8 run of its own to tie the score, 26-26, with 1:22 left in the first half. Courtney keyed the run with nine points, as freshman Shamona Hollingsworth chipped in four free throws.

     In the second half, the Lady Rams jumped to a 37-32 lead at the 16:32 mark, on the strength of a three-pointer and a layup by freshman Stephanie Sewell and two layups by junior Kashae Townsend.

     The Lady Cavaliers regained the lead, going on an 11-0 run over the next three minutes to take a 43-37 lead with 13:33 to play.

     Texas Wesleyan tied the score up, 45-45, with 7:18 left in the game. Courtney scored four points during the 8-2 run.

     However, St. Gregory's closed the game out with a 12-4 run of its own.

     Texas Wesleyan ended the evening shooting 30 percent (16-54) from the field and only seven percent (1-15) from behind the arc. The Lady Rams also shot a respectable 70 percent (16-23) from the charity stripe. They also turned the ball over 20 times and were outrebounded 37-34.

     Courtney finished the evening 6-of-13 from the field and 5-of-9 from the charity stripe. Townsend tallied 10 points, six rebounds and three steals.

     "We got the ball to Shawndrika a lot more than in previous games," Francis said. "She created a lot of easy shots herself. She helped us stay within reach."

     St. Gregory's shot 47 percent (21-45) from the floor and 42 percent (5-12) from behind the arc. The Lady Cavaliers also shot 77 percent (10-13) from the free-throw line.

     The Lady Rams will be back in action Saturday, when they travel to take on Hillsdale College at 6 p.m.