Final Stats
OMAHA, Neb. - The Omaha women's basketball team opened its 2012-13 season in grand fashion Monday night, knocking off North Carolina A&T 58-44 at the Sapp Fieldhouse.
The win was the first for the Mavericks over a Division I team at the Sapp Fieldhouse since UNO began its transition to Division I last season. UNO also won its fourth straight season opener and seventh straight home opener.
North Carolina A&T, coming off a 68-50 loss at No. 18 Nebraska on Friday, fell to 0-2 on the season.
Paige Frauendorfer led the Mavericks with 15 points and eight rebounds.
Jamie Nash contributed all around with 11 points, eight assists, six rebounds and five steals. Her eight assists moved her into fourth place in school history with 378 for her career.
Ericka House scored 11 points in her official collegiate debut. House knocked down 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. The Mavs were stellar defensively, forcing the Aggies to commit 20 turnovers and shoot just 30.8 percent from the field (16-of-52). UNO forced A&T into three shot clock violations.
The Aggies gained separation first from a back-and-forth battle by way of a 10-2 run to take a 17-10 lead at 9:48. But the Mavs countered with a 17-4 run over the next 7:04 to take a 27-21 lead with 2:44 to play. Nash started the run with a jumper and House drained a 3-pointer to make it 17-15. Frauendorfer scored UNO's next six points, and two free throws by Nash made it 23-21 Omaha.
Stacia Gebers followed with back-to-back buckets to give UNO the 27-21 lead. The Mavs went into the halftime break with a 31-26 advantage.
The Aggies trimmed the lead to 43-40 on a banked 3-pointer by Tracy King with 12:45 left. But the Mavericks answered with two free throws by Nash and a drive and kick by Nash to House in the corner for a 3-pointer to make it 48-40 with 7:43 remaining. After an A&T free throw, Blair-Mobley sank a pair of free throws and House rebounded her own missed 3-pointer and converted a close shot for a 52-41 lead with 5:08 left. A&T would get no closer than eight points the rest of the way.
Gebers finished with eight points and five rebounds.
Carolyn Blair-Mobley chipped in seven points and six rebounds. JaQuayla Berry paced the Aggies with 12 points and nine rebounds. The Mavs shot 16-of-20 (80.0 percent) from the free throw line and 48.7 percent (19-of-39) from the field.
The Mavericks continue their stretch of eight straight home games when Louisiana comes to town for a 7 p.m. matchup on Friday. The Ragin' Cajuns ended the Mavs' season last year in heartbreaking fashion, sinking a game-winning 3-pointer with eight seconds left in overtime for a 62-60 win in Lafayette.
