Box Score ADA, Okla. – SWOSU fell to East Central 67-62 at the Kerr Activities Center in Ada, Okla., in Great American Conference action on Thursday night.
SWOSU jumped out to a quick 9-0 lead within the first 2:31 of the game on the back of 3-point baskets from
Chelsea Bates,
Jennifer Williams and
Kimmi Sawatzky. ECU would pull as close at 9-7 before the Lady Bulldogs pushed the lead back to four at 15-11 with 11:35 remaining in the game. The Tigers rode a 22-8 run to close out the half.
ECU's lead would expand to as many as ten points in the second half, but the Lady Bulldogs refused to relent. Led by a massive 14 points by Sawatzky in the half, SWOSU went on a 12-4 run to pull within two with 6:18 left on the clock. The Lady Dawgs finally drew even at 62-62 with 1:08 remaining in the game, but a three point play by Janee Garza via a layup and foul shot with 22 seconds left gave the Tigers the lead for good.
Sawatzky finished with a game-high 20 points on 7-13 shooting, including four makes from deep. Williams finished with 14 points and Bates and
Jessica Penner poured in 11 each as the Lady Dawgs enjoyed their best field goal percentage since the season opener against Arkansas-Fort Smith at 38.2 pecent. They also shot a season-best 45 percent from beyond the arc. Despite the improved shooting, the team turned over the ball a season-high 21 times, including 12 turnovers in the second half.
"We put ourselves in a tough position building a large deficit in the second half but I'm proud of my team for fighting back and staying in the game until the end," said Head Coach
Kelsi Musick. "Unfortunately some untimely mistakes with turnovers, missed rebounds and defensive efforts were costly."
SWOSU has a quick turnaround, traveling to Lawton, Okla., for the third of four straight road games to take on Cameron at the Aggie Gym at 2 PM on Saturday.
