ALAMOSA, Colo. - Adams State Women's Basketball came up just short of an upset bid at home Friday night. The Grizzlies went toe-to-toe with RMAC leading Colorado Mesa but fell short of the upset, 59-49, inside Plachy Hall Gym.

The Grizzlies (1-13, 1-9 RMAC) shot their best percentage from three-point range this season going 43.8% on 7-16 made shots. The strong shooting combined with a 43.4 shooting percentage in the second half help them nearly hand the 23rd-ranked Mavericks (13-1, 10-0 RMAC) their first conference loss.

Early on Adams State found itself down 4-0 in the first 1:30 of the opening quarter. The deficit did not last long though as a 7-3 run from Adams State tied the game at 7-7 with 6:20 to play in the first quarter.

Zakiya Beckles found her offensive rhythm early and scored five of the Grizzlies first seven points, all of which that came in a row to tie the game. She gave the Grizzlies their first lead over the Mavericks, 9-7, with a contested layup.

The Mavericks manged to regain the lead and never relinquished it the rest of the game. Despite playing from behind, the Grizzlies never let the Mavericks truly create any comfortable separation for much of the night.

Colorado Mesa closed out the opening quarter outscoring Adams State 13-5 hold a six-point lead, 20-14, going into the second. CMU wasted little time in the second frame hitting a quick three to get up nine. A layup with at the 7:57 mark gave the Mavericks a double figure lead, 25-14.

The Mavericks managed to stay in front of the Grizzlies by margin of 9-11 points and got up by as much as 13 before halftime but the Grizzlies hit shots to stay within striking distance. Trailing 31-18 with 2:04 to play, Lowendie Laporal and Stephanie Ruiz hit quick shots to keep the Grizzlies within three possessions at the break.

Despite just shooting 31.8% in the first half, Adams State only trailed CMU by nine, 31-22. Helping CMU maintain its lead was thanks in part to a 45.8 shooting percentage in the first 20 minutes.

Coming out of halftime, the Mavericks hit back-to-back layups in first 1:36 to play as they jumped back out to a 13-point advantage, 35-22. They managed to hold a double-digit lead until the midway point of the quarter when Beckles hit a triple to cut the Grizzles deficit to seven, 37-30.

A baseline jumper from Madison Merschel at the 4:11 mark of the third got Adams state within five, 37-32, and capped off a 5-0 run by the home team. It was the closest Adams State got in the third before CMU closed out the quarter with a 6-0 run to lead 43-32.

The Mavericks got three quick points to open the fourth to extend their 6-0 run from the third to a 9-0 run before the Grizzlies responded. Early shots fell for the visitors and they managed to establish their largest lead of the night at 16 points, 53-37, within the first three minutes of the fourth.

Despite the lead, the Grizzlies responded with a 12-2 run that lasted nearly five minutes. With 2:45 on the clock, Ruiz hit a layup to get the Grizzlies within six, 55-29, of the Mavericks. The surge was not enough though as the Mavericks held on for the 59-49 road win.

Three from Adams State finished with double-digit points. Beckles led the way with a game-high 16 points which is also a career high. She was a perfect 5-5 from the floor, including four made three-pointers off the bench and was 2-2 at the free throw line. Ruiz and Brooke Neal both added 10 points and each had three rebounds. Ki'asha Harris was the game's leading rebounder with eight boards.

CMU also had three players finish in double figures with Sydni Brandon leading the way. She scored 15 points and was also a perfect 4-4 from the field, while going 7-8 at the free throw line. She also added six boards and three assists. Kelsey Siemons added 12 points while going 4-8 from the floor, with all of her made shots coming from beyond the arc. Karina Brandon chipped in 10 points on a 5-8 shooting performance and had five rebounds.

Jaylyn Duran added just nine points for the Mavericks as the Grizzlies defense held the RMAC's leading scorer to a 4-9 shooting performance. Duran entered the weekend averaging just over 22 points per game to lead the conference.

The Grizzlies close out their homestand tomorrow night, Jan. 19, as they host rival Western Colorado. Tip-off against the Mountaineers is set for 5:30 p.m. inside Plachy Hall Gym.