Women’s Basketball: Doucet, Goodwin Star as Louisiana Tops Texas State, 66-64

Ragin’ Cajuns secure fifth-straight victory after Goodwin makes late free throws

Click here for photo gallery of game 1 of weekend series.

LAFAYETTE – With the game tied and Louisiana’s four-game winning streak on the line, senior Skyler Goodwin capitalized on a late steal from the team’s newest 1,000-point scorer Ty’Reona Doucet by burying two clutch free throws with 2.5 seconds remaining to lift the Ragin’ Cajuns over Texas State, 66-64.
 
Doucet became the 19^th player in program history to eclipse the 1,000-point mark during the contest and now has 1,003 points in her storied career. The senior from Ville Platte finished the game with a fitting stat line, scoring a team-high 14 points and hauling in a team-best nine rebounds to go along with a career-high five steals.
 
Goodwin also produced a stat line worthy of her performance, adding 13 points, six rebounds and a team-leading three assists.
 
Louisiana once again turned up the heat on offense late in the game and ultimately went on to shoot 48.0 percent (24-for-50) from the floor and 80.0 percent (12-for-15) from the free throw line. The team also got a huge boost from its bench, outscoring the Bobcats, 26-4.
 
With the win, the Ragin’ Cajuns (6-5, 5-1 Sun Belt) are now on a five-game winning streak, their longest since stringing together five-straight victories last season during non-conference play.
 
After Doucet and Kimberly Burton combined to score the first four points of the game for Louisiana, Texas State (6-6, 3-4 Sun Belt) seized the momentum with a 13-4 run to take a 13-8 lead after the first quarter.
 
Da’Nasia Hood, who led the Bobcats with 17 points and eight rebounds, put her team in a great spot with a 23-14 lead at the 6:27 mark of the first half following a made layup. Needing to swing things back in their favor, the Ragin’ Cajuns did just that with a 9-0 run to tie the game at 23 points apiece.
 
However, the visitors were quick to act once again and went up by as a many as six points in the final 3:35 before settling for a 33-28 halftime lead.
Louisiana struggled to find a way to unlock the Texas State offense in the third quarter, which maintained its lead until Alexandria Goodly, who scored a season-high nine points in the game, hit a pivotal 3-pointer with 14 seconds remaining in the period to send the contest into the fourth tied 46-46.
 
With the tides beginning to turn, the Ragin’ Cajuns turned to their late-game threat Destiny McAfee, who added six points in the fourth quarter to put her team up 57-52. Texas State did not back down, though, and forced two ties in the next few minutes before Kennedy Taylor shot the Bobcats back in front, 62-59, with a triple.
 
Both defenses flexed hard late in the contest, but it was Louisiana that got the critical stop when Doucet stole the ball away from Ja’Kayla Bowie, which ultimately set up Goodwin’s clutch free throws with 2.5 seconds showing on the clock.
 
Hood had a shot at glory on the final possession, but her 3-point attempt sailed to the right, securing the 66-64 win for Louisiana.
 
The two teams will meet for the final time this season on Saturday afternoon, with tipoff slated for 4 p.m. CT at the CAJUNDOME. Fans can catch all of the action live on ESPN? and ESPN1420 AM.