SEATTLE – New Mexico State women's basketball took to the road for the first time in Western Athletic Conference play taking on Seattle U at the Connolly Complex on Thursday night. Seattle U led by five at the end of the first quarter and the deficit for the Aggies continued to expand over the remaining 30 minutes and the Crimson & White fell 69-59.
 
A slow start to the contest saw the teams combine to go 0-for-10 from the field. The first basket came from the free throw line for Seattle U (9-10, 3-1 WAC) 2:34 into the opening quarter. NM State (9-9, 2-1 WAC) responded with a basket from Gia Pack and a three-pointer from Brooke Salas to take a lead midway through the first.
 
Seattle U then came out on a 9-0 run before Monique Mills could answer with a pair of baskets to cut into the deficit. Through 10 minutes of action, the Aggies trailed the Redhawks 16-11.
 
The second quarter opened with a pair of three-pointers from NM State, which allowed the team to regain the lead 17-16. The lead did not last long; however, as SU went on a 7-0 run before the media timeout and the Aggies trailed 23-17 with 4:30 left in the half.
 
Salas proceeded to knock down a pair of free throws and a shot from downtown to put the team behind by just one, but the Redhawks then closed out with a pair of baskets of their own and NM State fell behind 29-22 to end of the first half.
 
Through 20 minutes of play, Salas led the Aggies with eight points and nine rebounds, followed by Monique Mills with six points and Zaire Williams added five points and seven rebounds.
 
NM State looked to use aggressive play early in the second half to cut into the Seattle U lead by putting the Redhawks into the bonus just 4:16 into the third quarter. SU was able to keep the Aggies away from the line, despite the play, and expand the lead over NM State to 50-38 heading into the fourth.
 
Aaliyah Prince came off the bench and got the Aggies the first basket of the final quarter looking to close in on the Redhawks lead, but the opponent was able to answer in the final 10 minutes. Despite outscoring SU 21-19 in the fourth, NM State fell 69-59 when the clock read zero.
 
A pair of Aggies finished with a double-double at night's end. Salas led the way with 18 points and 11 rebounds, followed by Pack with 15 points and 10 boards.
 
New Mexico State remains on the road and heads to Lockhart Arena in Orem, Utah to take on Utah Valley University this Saturday, Jan. 20, at 3 p.m. MT.