HONOLULU, Hawaii (January 5, 2000)--The TCU Lady Frogs opened the WAC conference season with an impressive, hard-fought 72-66 overtime triumph over the Hawaii Rainbow Wahine. Forward Kati Safaritova burned Hawaii for 26 points in the game, including 21 in the second half to pace the Frogs.

TCU (9-4, 1-0) trailed 32-23 at halftime after managing the team's lowest single-half scoring output of the season. The Horned Frogs, who shot just 26.5 percent from the field in the first half, connected on 48.0 percent of their attempts in the second stanza as the team battled back against Hawaii (9-3, 0-1).

Safaritova led the Frogs back in the ball game after halftime, as she scored 13 consecutive points for TCU. With a hot shooting touch, she single-handedly turned a 48-40 deficit into a 51-48 Frog lead with 4:15 remaining.

The junior transfer was 10-for-22 shooting for the game, including 8-for-11 in the second half. She drilled 5-of-6 three-point attempts after intermission, equalling her previous season total in just 20 minutes of play. The 26 points were the most scored by a TCU player in a game this season.

TCU had a four-point lead in the final minute of regulation, but Hawaii tied the game at 55-55 with four seconds remaining on a layup by freshman April Atuaia. The shot forced TCU to play its first overtime game in nearly two seasons.

The Frogs dominated the game in overtime, scoring the first 11 points to take a 66-55 lead. Guard Tricia Payne was 8-for-8 from the free throw line in the extra period and finished with 18 points for the contest. Payne also tied a career high with a team-high nine rebounds. Forward Janice Thomas added 15 points and four blocked shots for TCU.

Hawaii entered the game as the top shooting team in the WAC, but hit just 39.0 percent of its shots on Friday night. It was the 11th time in 13 games that a TCU opponent has shot less than 40 percent from the field.

TCU next faces San Jose State (8-5, 0-2) in San Jose on Sunday, January 7. The Frogs return home to face Nevada on Friday, January 12 and Fresno State on Sunday, January 14.