The Hornets battled for 40 minutes, but were plagued by costly fouls and an inability to execute in crunch time during their 62-59 loss to Weber State Saturday.

“We played extremely well and executed our game plan, but we had fouls and couldn?t get shots to fall in the end,” head coach Carolyn Jenkins said.

The game left the sizable crowd of 458 at Hornet Gym on the edge of their seats throughout the game as it went back and forth until the final buzzer.

Just inside the final moments of the first half, the Hornets took a 28-26 lead on a three-pointer from Rexanne Rodriguez. The Hornets did most of their first half damage, however, by way of their post play. Forward Sephora Scoubes had 15 points on 7 for14 from the floor, which her coach attributed to hustle.

“She was aggressive in getting to the basket,” Jenkins said.

Scoubes was also aggressive on the defensive side of the ball, coming away with five blocks and altering the trajectory of several other shots.

After a quiet first half, the Hornets made a concerted effort to get Michelle St. Clair involved into the offense in the second half. St. Clair scored 18 of her 22 points in the second half. For the game, St. Clair was nine of16 from the field, and four of six from the three-point line.

The Hornets went on a tear in the second half, connecting on 14 of their 28 shot attempts. As frequently as the Hornets made their shots, however, they were also called for fouls. Jenkins believes that the Hornets mental breakdowns are more responsible for their losses than their talent base.

“At this point in the season, it?s more about the mental side of the game,” Jenkins said. “We have too many mental breakdowns.”

The mental breakdowns committed by the Hornets put Weber State on the line 26 times. Weber was 17 of 26 from the free-throw line.

What also affected the Hornets in crunch time was the depth of Weber State?s bench. Weber State got scoring production from nine of their 10 players, while the Hornets tired down the stretch run.

“Our players were aggressive, but they need rest,” Jenkins said.

The Hornets had a chance to tie in their final possession, but Michelle St. Clair?s three-point prayer went unanswered as she was corralled by three defenders upon the release of the ball.

The Hornets now go on the road to face Portland State tomorrow night.