ST. CHARLES, Mo. – The Lady Mulerider Basketball team endured a late Tiger rally that saw them lose sight of the lead in the game's final minutes of action as Lincoln topped SAU 62-57 at the GAC/MIAA Crossover Challenge on Saturday morning inside the Hyland Arena in St. Charles, Missouri.
Southern Arkansas came out strong in the first half as they out-shot Lincoln from the floor with an average field goal percentage of 44% (11-of-25) to 19.4% (6-of-31). Defensively, the Lady Muleriders totaled 18 rebounds in the first half, five of which freshman Maggie Evans accounted for, and sophomore Tuana Dinc added three blocks.
At the intermission, Southern Arkansas led by a score of 29-18 as sophomore Erin Brinkley registered the most points for SAU with six, followed by junior Angela Villarreal with five points while junior Ramiah Henry added three steals to contribute to the Lady Mulerider advantage.
The Tigers found momentum in the second half as they combined for a total of 44 points to eventually gain the lead in the fourth quarter. SAU held on to the lead until late in the fourth quarter when Lincoln would start to rally on a 13-4 run that tied the game at 55-all.
Southern Arkansas saw the lead for the final time after that sequence as junior Olivia McWilliams made a jump shot that put the Lady Muleriders up by two, 55-53, with just under four minutes left to play.
The Tigers received the break-through they would need with 3:14 on the clock as their leading scorer Citlali Lopez made a layup to tie the game at 55-all. Lincoln would start to pull away from SAU under the 3-minute mark after Karissa Black connected with a 3-pointer to take the lead, 58-55.
With 24 seconds left to play, McWilliams scored SAU's final points on a layup that brought the Lady Muleriders within two at 57-59, but the Tigers made three of its ensuing four attempts from the free throw line to take the victory 62-57.
OF NOTE
- Sue Key (14), Tuana Dinc (12), and Olivia McWilliams (10) each had double-digit points in the game as the trio combined for 36 of SAU's 57 points
- McWilliams and Henry had three steals apiece
- Maggie Evans led SAU in rebounds with 10 of the team's 30
- SAU forced 20 total turnovers
UP NEXT
The Lady Muleriders are back on the road next week as they will open conference play in Bethany, Oklahoma with a GAC matchup against Southern Nazarene. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
