Ohio Valley Conference

CHARLESTON, Ill.  - Lalani Ellis sank a jumper and free throw with nine seconds left to lift Eastern Illinois to a 51-49 win over Southern Indiana in a game between two of the top teams in the current Ohio Valley Conference standings.
 
In the end EIU improved to 13-6 overall, 10-0 in the OVC while USI fell to 15-6 overall, 7-3 in the OVC.
 
Both teams lost key players in the contest with Macy McGlone and Kiyley Flowers both fouling out for EIU in the fourth quarter.  Madison Webb fouled out in the fourth for the Screaming Eagles.
 
EIU held the lead a majority of game with its biggest lead of ten points coming in the opening minute of the third quarter on a Flowers fast break lay-up after Ellis opened the quarter with a jumper expanding on the Panthers 24-18 halftime edge.
 
USI took the lead with 33 seconds remaining as Triniti Ralston sank a pair of free throws putting USI up 49-48.  
 
Ellis drove the lane on the next possession hitting the game winner and a free throw.  USI had one shot with two seconds remaining that fell short and time expired on the rebound.
 
McGlone led all scorers with 22 points and 16 rebounds going 9-of-16 from the floor.
 
Vanessa Shafford led USI with 15 points as the only Screaming Eagles player in double figures.

WESTERN ILLINOIS 94, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 61
MACOMB, Ill. - The Leatherneck Women's Basketball Team showcased it's offensive firepower Saturday afternoon at Western Hall, routing Southeast Missouri State 94-66 in a game where three Leathernecks scored 20 or more points.

WIU (10-9, 4-6 OVC) set the tone early, jumping out to a 27-point first quarter and never looking back. Junior forward Mia Nicastro led the team on Saturday with a season-high 29-point performance on 10-of-18 shooting, including 8-for-9 from the free-throw line. Her contributions didn't stop there, as she added seven rebounds and three assists to cap a dominant outing.

Sophomore guard Raegan McCowan also poured in 22 points on 7-of-9 shooting while collecting nine rebounds and dishing out four assists. The bench points were also a big part in the victory for the Leathernecks as Freshman guard Madison Davis delivered a strong showing from beyond the arc, hitting four three-pointers en route to 21 points setting a new career high for points in a game. WIU's balance was evident across the board, with 22 assists on 29 made field goals and shooting an impressive 61.1% from deep as they made 11 three-pointers on just 18 attempts. The Leathernecks also capitalized at the free-throw line, converting 25-of-30 attempts.

Defensively, the Leathernecks clamped down in the paint, holding SEMO to 38% shooting while out rebounding the visitors 37-32. WIU's ability to turn defense into offense was on full display, as WIU scored 22 points off turnovers and 12 on second-chance opportunities.

SIUE 76, MOREHEAD STATE 58
EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - SIUE topped Morehead State for its second OVC win of the season. SIUE improves to 4-15 and 2-8 in the OVC while MSU falls to 7-13 and 2-8 in the OVC.
 
First Community Arena saw several top performances from the Cougars including Kk Rodriguez who led the team with 19 points. Ava Stoller who had a season-high 17 points and went 5-5 from the free throw line and contributed four assists, and Macy Silvey had 16 points and kept her hot streak going 4-7 from the three-point range.
 
Sivley hit her first three of the game in the first quarter that gained the Cougars their first lead of the game, with 1:41 left to play.
 
Halle Smith followed with a layup assisted by Stoller to extend the lead.
 
Silvey found momentum knocking down another three with 14 seconds left in the first.
 
Sofie Lowis started out the second quarter with a three-pointer, putting SIUE up by 11 points.
 
Smith made another layup assisted by Rodriguez to continue a 20-2 run for the Cougars.
 
Kendal George hit her first three of the game, with 4:36 left in the second quarter, off an opponent turnover.
 
The Cougars claimed a 23-point lead before halftime. SIUE is 2-5 on the season and 21-8 overall when leading at halftime.
 
Rodriguez kicked off the third quarter making a layup on the fast break off an MSU turnover.
 
Jaiden Bryant made a second-chance jumper in the third quarter, putting the Cougars at a 25-point lead, their largest of the game.
 
As a team the Cougars made 44.6 percent (29-65) of their shots from the field and made 83.3 percent (10-12) of their free throws. They also had 22 assists and 40 total rebounds.

LINDENWOOD 70, LITTLE ROCK 68
ST. CHARLES, Mo. - Lindenwood women's basketball (12-7, 8-2 OVC) gets a clutch basket from Ellie Brueggemann with one second remaining as the Lions secure a 70-68 win over Little Rock (9-10, 7-3 OVC) on Saturday afternoon. The Lions now move into sole possession of second place after an 8-2 start to Ohio Valley Conference play.

Brooke Coffey was effective from the floor shooting 7-10 from the field on her way to 15 points. Coffey has now scored in double-figures in eight of the 10 OVC games including in six of her last seven. She also was able to grab four rebounds and dish out two assists.

Justis Odom was able to get to the free throw line going 9-11 in the contest. She finished with 13 points and a team-high seven rebounds while adding three assists and one steal. Lindenwood out-rebounded the Trojans on the glass 30-23 while assisting on 14 of their 23 made field-goals.

Gracy Wernli was the third Lion to score in double-figures adding 10 points on 3-5 shooting including two threes. Wernli added a career-high six rebounds in the process. All five Lindenwood starters scored at least eight points including nine from Brueggemann who scored the game winner for LU.

As a team, Lindenwood shot 51.1% from the floor going 23-45 from the field and 20-26 from the foul line. Little Rock was held to 39.2% from the floor, making five threes and going 23-28 at the line (82.1%). The Trojans defense forced LU into 17 turnovers resulting in 20 points.

Early in the first quarter, Lindenwood jumped out to an 8-4 lead at the first media timeout. Coffey started the game off with four quick points as they began the game shooting 3-6 from the field. Brueggemann and Coffey combined for 11 of LU's 19 first quarter points as they led 19-13 after one. LU shot 7-14 from the field while holding the Trojans to 26.7% shooting through the first 10 minutes.

After pushing to lead to nine points at the nine minute mark after a three by Coffey, Little Rock made a come-back closing the gap to three points at 27-24. Lindenwood's defense made adjustments going on a 6-2 run to end the half as the Lions led 33-26 through two quarters. Coffey led the Lions with nine points at the break.

The third quarter saw the Trojans close the gap to four points after ending the third on a 9-5 run. Little Rock out-scored the Lions 20-17 in the quarter while limiting the Lions to 5-11 from the field. Lindenwood was able to make it to the foul line in the quarter going 6-8.

With 8:12 remaining, Lindenwood stretch out to their largest lead of the afternoon at 11 points after a pair of free throws by Odom. Little Rock responded on a 14-4 run to take the lead with 2:30 remaining after an and-one by Alaina Payne. Wernli stepped up big-time with a corner three with 1:24 left to give the Lions back the lead at 67-65.

After a miss foul shot by LR's Jordan Holman, Lindenwood caught a break on a broken play which freed up Brueggemann to take a mid-range jumper to seal the game. Lindenwood's foul shooting kept the in the game late as they went 9-10 in the fourth quarter.

TENNESSEE TECH 70, UT MARTIN 59
MARTIN, Tenn. - A big second quarter for the Tennessee Tech women helped overcome a slow first quarter as the Golden Eagles left the Elam Center Saturday with a big 70-59 victory over the host UT Martin Skyhawks.

Tech improves to 14-5 overall and 8-2 in the Ohio Valley Conference, winning the first two games of their four-game road trip. The Golden Eagles face Morehead State and Southern Indiana next week before returning to the Eblen Center.

Foul calls against Anna Walker and Amelia Pfeiffer slowed down the Golden Eagle posts as the Tech squad hist just three buckets in the opening stanza, shooting 20 percent from the field. UT Martin didn't take much of an advantage as the Skyhawks kept the Golden Eagles within arms reach with a 13-8 quarter.

The Skyhawks (7-14, 4-6 OVC) were 6-for-13 from the field in the first 10 minutes.

It was the second quarter, however, where the Golden Eagles were able to gain momentum and propel themselves to a lead they never relinquished. Pfeiffer hit a second-chance bucket at 9:09 in the second to cut the UTM lead to three, then Reghan Grimes made it a one-point game at 13-12 with a basket off of a Skyhawk turnover.

After Anaya Brown hit a pair of free throws to give UTM a three-point lead once more, Walker scored on a turnaround jumper off a fast break pass from Peyton Carter. Daejah Richmond split a pair of free throws on the other end, then Chloe Larry sank a floating jumper to tie the game at 16-all with 6:36 left before the intermission and drew a foul. Larry completed the three-point play and Tech never trailed again.

Tech outscored the Skyhawks 21-5 in the period, bolstered by a 12-0 run and shot 6-for-12 from the floor and 8-for-8 at the free-throw line.

The stripe was also a deciding factor in the game. UTM was whistled for 24 total fouls, putting the Golden Eagles at the line for 27 shots. Tech knocked down 22, including an 11-for-12 performance at the line for Reghan Grimes to contribute to her game-leading 18 points. The fourth quarter saw the most as Tech went 13-for-17 in the final minutes.

The Skyhawks struggled from the field before the half was they were 1-for-12 from the field, the lone field goal coming from Kenley McCarn and the other three points coming at the stripe.

With a 29-18 Golden Eagle lead at the intermission, Tech just had to maintain. The advantage increased by two by the end of the third quarter as Tech outscored UTM 21-19 in the period, then that push was dashed in the fourth quarter as the Skyhawks topped the Golden Eagles 22-20 in the fourth as both teams scored 41 points in the second half.

UTM was only able to get the Tech advantage back to single digits twice – both in the third quarter.

In addition to Grimes' 18, Keeley Carter also scored 16 points on a 6-for-10 day with four of Tech's eight 3-pointers. Walker had nine points, while Larry had eight. Pfeiffer, who had seven points, led the team with seven rebounds, while Grimes had four assists.

McCarn and Richmond led UTM with 13 points each, while Brown scored 10.