SAN ANTONIO, TX (12.15.19) - UT Dallas junior guard Raenett Hughes poured in career-best 35 points Sunday afternoon as the Comets rallied past No. 17-ranked Trinity, 72-68, in a key regional road game.

Hughes accounted for nearly half of the Comets offense in the contest, but it was late three-pointers by Kelley Skinner and Victoria Pena that would propel UTD to the upset victory. 

Down by two points with two minutes to play, Skinner drained a trey to push the Comets to a 67-66 lead over Trinity with just 1:43 left in the contest. After a layup by Abby Holland on the Tigers' next possession, Trinity would regain a slim one-point advantage heading to the final minute of the game.

Trinity (3-2) forced a turnover on the Comets' ensuing possession, but missed a three-pointer with 41 ticks left which would have likely sealed the victory. After a timeout to advance the ball to the front court, Skinner found Pena wide open at the top of the key for the go-ahead three-pointer with just 17 seconds remaining to give the Comets the lead for good. Nkechinyerem Okehi would seal the UTD victory after a Tiger timeout with a block off Holland with five seconds on the clock.

Hughes capped her first-career 30-point performance with two free throw free throws with 1.1 on the clock to lock down the four-point victory for the Comets. Hughes finished the game 14-for-17 from the field, matching a school record for field goals made in a game and 7-for-8 from the foul line, while adding four rebounds, three assists and three steals. Pena added 13 points while Skinner had 11 points, both of which closing the game with three treys. Okehi led all rebounders with nine boards while Pena dished out a game-high seven assists.

The Comets (3-3) got off to a quick start on the road, leading by as many as nine points twice in the opening period before setting for a 18-13 advantage after the first 10 minutes of action. The host Tigers, however, outscored UTD, 22-10, in the second period to head into the locker room with a 35-28 advantage.

Trinity extended its lead to as many as nine points, 37-28, with a pair of free throws to open the second half, but the Comets responded with a 10-0 run over a stretch of 2:05, capped by a Hughes' fast-break lay up at the 7:31 mark of the third, giving UTD a 38-37 lead. The two teams then traded leads four more times in the third quarter before the Comets maintained a slim one-point lead, 52-51, heading into the fourth.

The Comets and Tigers then traded lead eight times in the fourth period, the final lead change coming on Pena's three-pointer with 17 seconds left. UTD's four-point advantage after Hughes' final free throws proved to be the largest lead by either squad in the fourth.

UTD shot an impressive 47.5 percent (28-of-59) from the field on the afternoon, hitting 7-of-16 three-pointers (43.8%), while shooting just 47.4 percent (9-of-19) from the foul line. The Comets out-rebounded Trinity, 46-33.

The Comets return to action next Thursday and Friday as they travel to San Juan, Puerto Rico, for two games in the Puerto Rico Classico. UTD will open the event Thursday against SUNY Oneonta before facing Elizabethtown on Friday.