GUNNISON, Colo.  It took two extra periods to decide Tuesday night's Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference women's basketball matchup between host Western Colorado and Colorado Mesa University, and after 12 ties and 19 lead changes it was the visiting Mavericks who pulled out a 76-70 double-overtime win.

JUST THE FACTS
Final score: CMU def. Western 76-70 OT2
Records: Western 5-14 overall (2-11 RMAC), CMU 16-4 (10-3)
Location: Paul Wright Gym, Gunnison, Colo.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Mountaineer held slim leads over the Mavs at the conclusion of the first, second and third quarters, but had to battle back from a four-point deficit with less than three minutes remaining in the fourth to send the game to extra time.
• Trailing 53-49 with 2:56 to play in the fourth, Western cut into the deficit on a fastbreak layup from Brooklyn Seymour following a defensive rebound at the other end by Alyssa Eckroth.
• Back in the defensive end, Seymour pulled down a defensive rebound and was fouled again driving up court. She drained both attempts from the foul line to pull Western even at 53-53
• Mesa broke the tie with a layup in their end only to have Ivey Schmidt return the favor, squaring things at 55-55 and sending the game past four quarters.
• The lead exchanged hands five times in the first OT until a Mesa miss and Seymour rebound turned into free throws for Schmidt, who hit both to lift Western's advantage to 64-61, the biggest differential . Only a last second 3-pointer from Mesa's Kylie Kravig would save the Mavs and sent the battle into a second OT period.
• That second five-minute extra period wasn't as kind to the Mountaineers, who were unable to score until the 1:53 mark, and after Mesa had built a six-point advantage. Western closed to within four at 70-66 and then again at 74-70, but that last spread was with five seconds left in the game and with Mesa in possession of the ball, too little time for the Mountaineers close the gap.

COURT NOTES

• Western had four players push into double figures in scoring, led by Schmidt's 18 points. Seymour scored a career-high 17, while Natalie Jojola added 14 and Eckroth chipped in with 10.
• The Mountaineers played nearly the whole game without leading scorer and rebounder Rachel Cockman, who went out with an injury in the first minute of the contest.
• Mesa was led by a crazy night from Olivia Reed. She posted a game-high 30 points and completed the double-double by ripping down 24 rebounds, nearly one-third of the team's total of 67 rebounds.
• Reed helped the Mavs dominate in the paint, outscoring Western 42-20 from in close, and forging a 67-45 rebounding advantage.
• Both teams were inconsistent from the floor, quarter by quarter. The Mountaineers shot 44 percent in the opening frame, just 12% in the second, then back up to 33% in the third, but down to 25% in the fourth. Despite the cold spell that started the second OT, Western shot 33% over the two OT periods., finishing the night at 30%.
• Mesa hit 50% in the first quarter, and still trailed by a basket, then halved that to 25% in the second followed by only 18% in the third. The bounced back to shoot 37% in the fourth, 31% in the OT periods, and 33% on the night.
• Western had turned the ball over in double figures in 16 of its 17 games, but in a double-OT game with Mesa it surrendered possession just 7 times.

NEXT UP
The Mountaineer are back in Paul Wright Gym Saturday afternoon for a 3 p.m. RMAC contest with visiting Westminster (Utah) University.