PUEBLO, Colo.—The opportunities were there. That's all the Grizzlies could have asked for but two game-tying shots in the final 13 seconds of regulation saw the Grizzlies drop their first Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) game of the 2022-23 season on Friday night here inside Massari Arena. The Grizzlies dropped the game 68-65.

The Grizzlies' biggest lead was just three points and the ThunderWolves were able get their biggest lead of nine points in the second half when they led 65-59. That lead was just big enough as with the score 67-65 and 15 seconds left, the Grizzlies had a chance to tie the game. Sharmayne Finley, the leading scorer with 25 points up to that point, raced to the paint and put up a shot but missed.

After a quick foul, CSU Pueblo missed the second free throw making the score 68-65. As the Grizzlies raced back down the court, Finley found Harmanie Dominguez, who had 17 points, miss a three pointer as the clock expired.

The game opened with the Grizzlies going 1-of-9 from the field and they trailed 19-15 going into the second.

The Grizzlies were able to regain the lead at 22-21 in the second quarter as they went on a 5-0 run. The ThunderWolves were able to keep the Grizzlies scoreless for 2:14 seconds into the media timeout as they took a 25-22 lead. Finally after a 3:20 second drought Finley broke the drought that led to a drought for the ThunderWolves. After back and forth showing by both teams, the ThunderWolves took a 29-27 lead into the break.

In the first half, the Grizzlies shot 9-of-21 (29 percent) from the field including 3-fo-9 (33.3 percent) from beyond the arch and 6-of-8 (75 percent) from the free throw. The Grizzlies had four steals while causing the ThunderWolves eight turnovers.  CSU Pueblo shot 10-of-27 from the field.

The third quarter is what both teams were expecting as the back-and-forth run-and-gun offenses for both teams saw both teams score 23 points. Dominguez was the player of the quarter as she paced the Grizzlies on a 9-3 run, scoring all nine points.  The two teams scored 23 points.

Finley led all scorers with 25 points as she hit 10-of-16 from the field including 4-of-6 from the free throw line.

The Grizzlies now 6-3 overall and 2-1 in the RMAC will travel to Las Vegas, N.M. on Saturday for a 5:00 p.m. tilt with the New Mexico Highlands Cowgirls.