JACKSON, Miss. — The Prairie View A&M women's basketball team closed out its three-game road trip with a 53-49 loss in Southwestern Athletic Conference play to Jackson State Monday evening in the Lee E. Williams Athletic Assembly Center. 
 
"We struggled to get boards," Prairie View A&M Head Coach Sandy Pugh said. "They were missing shots, but we weren't coming up with the rebound and that's something we have to work on. Offensively, I thought we were doing a good job of moving the basketball and making them have to guard us in the half court setting. We have to come up with those loose balls and secure the rebound. I thought those were the biggest challenges for us tonight. This was our game, but we let it get away from us down the stretch." 
 
Graduate transfer Tatyana Perez carried the Panthers' offense early on, scoring six of her 12 first-half points in the opening quarter to keep the Panthers (4-13, 1-4 SWAC) in striking distance of Jackson State, who led 12-8 at the end of one.

Perez continued to give Jackson State (8-8, 6-0 SWAC) headaches, knocking down a pair of shots to tie the game at 12 in the early goings of the second quarter. A three pointer from senior Ke'Asia Williams put the Panthers up 15-12 with 7:46 left in the half. The sides traded baskets but senior Bernesha Peters nailed back-to-back treys to put the Panthers in front 23-19. Jackson State managed to pull ahead, but sophomore Keyanna Tolbert made a three-pointer late to send the Panthers into the lockers up 26-24.
 
The Panthers continued to press the advantage in the third as a layup from freshman Diana Rosenthal started things off, Senior Dominique Newman responded to a Jackson State basket to keep Prairie View A&M, and a layup from junior Jhyrah Cobb pushed the score to 34-29.

The Lady Tigers soon cut the deficit to one with a quick 4-0 spurt, but back-to-back jumpers from freshmen Kennedy Paul and Rosenthal, extended the Panthers' lead to 38-33 in the late stages of the third, but Jackson State's Kaisah Lucky led an 14-4 run that carried deep into the fourth quarter and left the Panthers trailing 47-42 with 1:54 left.
 
Williams and Peters each knocked down a three-point shot late to twice bring the Panthers within one possession, but Prairie View A&M was unable to overtake the Lady Tigers in the final moments.
 
Perez paced the Panthers with 14 points, six assists, two steals and two rebounds. Peters followed with nine points, four rebounds and three steals. Rosenthal contributed with eight points, going 4-for-4 from the line, along with four rebounds and three steals.
 
Lucky led Jackson State with 16 points, six boards and four assists.

Next Up:
The Panthers will return to their home floor to face the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff on Saturday, Jan. 25. The matchup is set for 3 p.m.in the Baby Dome.