EL PASO, TX — Western New Mexico (0-0) lost to UTEP (1-0) 100-64 on Monday. 
 
UTEP also held advantages on the glass, 43-26, and in shot-making, going 39-for-65 from the field while Western New Mexico finished 18-for-51. Tess Taylor (Huffman, TX/Hargrave High School) and Jordan Sapien (El Paso, TX/Pebble Hills High School) each scored 20 for Western New Mexico. 
 
Western New Mexico answered a long first-quarter scoring drought with an 8-0 run, using Laurelle Ihekona's (Richmond, TX/Foster High School) free throws, a Breelee Nichols 3-pointer and Tess Taylor's (Huffman, TX/Hargrave High School) free throws to cut UTEP's lead from 20-6 to 20-14. Earlier, Western New Mexico went from Taylor's jumper that tied it 4-4 at 8:22 to its next point at 3:19 as UTEP built an 18-5 advantage. Taylor added a 3-pointer with 3 seconds left, and Western New Mexico ended the first quarter trailing 21-17.
 
After Breelee Nichols tied the game at 21 with 8:41 left in the second quarter. Taylor ended the drought with back-to-back 3-pointers, and Sapien added a 3-pointer and four free throws late in the quarter. 
 
Sapien accounted for two layups and three free throws, while Emori LaSalle (Crosby, TX/Crosby High School) added Western New Mexico's lone 3-pointer of the quarter. UTEP led 74-50 entering the fourth quarter.
 
Sapien hit a 3-pointer and later added a fast-break layup, and Taylor scored four points in the final 2:38. 
 
Taylor scored 20 points, made three 3-pointers and converted 7 of 8 free throws. Sapien also scored 20 points, going 8 of 12 at the free-throw line while adding two assists and no turnovers. Laurelle Ihekona (Richmond, TX/Foster High School) collected a team-high seven rebounds and tallied a team-high three steals to go with four points. Breelee Nichols added nine points on 4-of-5 shooting with four rebounds and two assists.
 
Up next, the Western New Mexico Women's Basketball team visits New Mexico Highlands University on Monday, Nov. 9, at 1 PM MT, in Las Vegas, N.M.