Box Score (html)
 
WEATHERFORD, Okla. – The #14/11-ranked Lady Bulldogs overcame an early 12-point deficit, fending off East Central for a 91-76 victory on Thursday night at the Pioneer Cellular Event Center and extending their winning streak to 20 consecutive games.
 
East Central started the game shooting incredibly, knocking down 7-of-10 three-pointers in the first quarter and building a 26-14 lead less than eight minutes into the game. Hailey Tucker kept the Lady Dawgs close, scoring 18 points on her own in the quarter to keep the damage to seven points, 31-24, at the end of the quarter. SWOSU clamped down defensively in the second quarter, allowing ECU to only hit four baskets – nine overall points – and the Lady Bulldogs took a 44-40 lead to the break.
 
The second half featured mini runs by each team, with SWOSU never trailing while building a double-digit lead on three different occasions. Every time it appeared the Lady Bulldogs were about to pull away, the Tigers answered with a run and they trailed by just two, 61-59, with 3:18 to play in the third quarter before Savannah Gray knocked down a corner three-pointer.
 
SWOSU led by three with less than two minutes to play in the third quarter when Taber Beer knocked down a three-pointer in front of the SWOSU bench, jump starting a 7-2 run to end the quarter and take a 71-63 lead to the fourth. ECU got within four points once in the fourth, but Hayden Priddy answered with a three-pointer and the lead was never less than six points the rest of the way.
 
The Lady Bulldogs were very balanced offensively, with four players scoring in double figures to help SWOSU reach 90 points for the 10th time this season. Hailey Tucker led the way with 27 points, hitting 9-of-21 field goal attempts and 4-of-11 three-pointers while also totaling four rebounds, three steals, two assists and one blocked shot. Hayden Priddy knocked down 8-of-16 field goal attempts and three three-pointers to finish with 19 points, five rebounds and three steals.
 
Taber Beer continued to give SWOSU big contributions off the bench, scoring a career-high 15 points off the bench by hitting all five of her field goal attempts, including three three-pointers, and hitting a pair of free throws. In addition to her fourth double-digit scoring effort in the past seven games, Beer totaled four rebounds, three assists and two steals. Tyra Aska was the fourth Lady Bulldog scoring in double figures with 12 points to go along with four assists, three rebounds and two blocked shots.
 
In total, SWOSU got scoring contributions from nine out of ten players who saw action against East Central, including four rebounds and a team-high seven rebounds from Bethany Franks, who returned to the starting lineup after missing most of the last three games.
 
"We knew coming in that East Central was going to play us tough and that's exactly what we got tonight," SWOSU Head Coach Kelsi Musick said. "After they got hot in the first quarter, we picked up our pressure and stuck to the game plan after that and had several players step up and give us contributions at the offensive end. Games like this are good for this team, challenging us to execute and do things right all the way to the end."
 
SWOSU (20-1, 15-0 GAC) hits the road on Saturday for a trip to Shawnee to face Oklahoma Baptist, with tipoff set for 1:00 pm inside the Noble Complex.