Eagles edged out after Skyhawks’ fourth-quarter rally

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women’s Basketball was edged out at home Saturday night by a final score of 63-60 after a fourth-quarter rally by the University of Tennessee at Martin.
 
The Screaming Eagles found themselves in another contest on Saturday that came down to the final possession. Both teams were seeking to get back to .500 in Ohio Valley Conference play after entering Saturday with a 2-3 conference record.
 
The Skyhawks jumped out to an early 5-0 lead, but the Screaming Eagles quickly answered to tie the game. Sophomore guard Vanessa Shafford (Linton, Indiana) provided the first lead of the game for Southern Indiana when she splashed in a three-pointer just under the six-minute mark of the first period.
 
Defenses took over in the back half of the first quarter, as both squads had trouble getting off clean shots from the floor. One Screaming Eagle who found an early rhythm was junior forward Meredith Raley (Haubstadt, Indiana), who gave USI a 14-7 lead inside the last minute of the first. Raley had six points after the first quarter, while USI led 15-9 after one period of play.
 
Raley began the second quarter with a jump shot to put USI up 17-9. USI continued the momentum in the following minutes, working aggressively inside and getting to the foul line. At the 7:29 mark of the second period, senior forward Tara Robbe (Wildwood, Missouri) drove toward the hoop for a layup after a spin move in the lane. The bucket put USI ahead by 13, 22-9, over the Skyhawks.
 
After shooting under 30 percent through the midway point of the second quarter, UT Martin found some late momentum before going into halftime. With USI ahead 27-14, the Skyhawks cut the margin down with a 7-0 run in the final two and a half minutes to make the score 27-21 USI heading into the intermission.
 
Out of the break, Southern Indiana pushed its lead back to double-digits, 31-21, on a pair of jumpers from Shafford and senior guard Tori Handley (Jeffersonville, Indiana). UT Martin cut the advantage back down to five for USI in the middle of the third quarter, but the Screaming Eagles were not fazed. USI went back up 10, 36-26, with 4:55 left in the third after a corner three from junior guard Lexie Green (Indianapolis, Indiana) and a layup by Raley.
 
USI’s defense continued to contest and force UT Martin into tough shots, especially from outside. In the third quarter, the Screaming Eagles held the Skyhawks to 3-14 shooting and 0-8 from three. Southern Indiana took a 43-33 lead into the fourth period.
 
UT Martin made a big run in the first portion of the fourth quarter. After USI led by 12 shortly into the start of the fourth quarter, the Skyhawks made their rally to tie the game at 49 with just under five minutes to play. The hot-shooting Skyhawks then took a 52-49 lead shortly later after a made triple.
 
UT Martin increased its lead to seven, 59-52, with two minutes left in the fourth. Following a timeout, Southern Indiana trimmed the deficit. The Screaming Eagles got the score down to four, 62-58, with 28 seconds remaining after Handley nailed a three-pointer. After USI got a steal on the defensive end, Shafford made a layup to make it 62-60 UT Martin. The Skyhawks made a free throw to go back up by three. USI had a little over five seconds to tie the game, but the last-second triple attempt did not go in for the Screaming Eagles and the game ended.
 
USI had four players in double figures Saturday night. Shafford led the way with 14 points on 4-6 shooting with five rebounds. Raley had 12 points and seven rebounds after a 5-6 night from the field. Handley and senior forward Hannah Haithcock (Washington Courthouse, Ohio) each had 10 points. As a team, the Screaming Eagles were 20-42 from the floor for 47.6 percent with four made threes and 16 made free throws in the contest.
 
UT Martin had two players score at least 20 points. Sophomore guard Shae Littleford scored 21 points and freshman guard Josie Storey tallied 20. The Skyhawks finished 18-44 for 40.9 percent from the floor with seven triples and 20 made free throws. UT Martin won the rebounding battle 29-27.
 
Saturday’s result put USI at 8-9 on the season and 2-4 in conference play. UT Martin’s record moved to 7-10 overall and 3-3 in the OVC.
 
The Screaming Eagles will head back on the road next week to continue Ohio Valley Conference play. USI will face fellow OVC newcomer and former Great Lakes Valley Conference foe Lindenwood University from St. Charles, Missouri next Thursday at 5:30 p.m. Southern Indiana will then travel to Southern Illinois University Edwardsville next Saturday at 1 p.m. to face the Cougars for the second time during the OVC season. Both games can be seen live with a subscription to ESPN+ and heard on 95.7 FM The Spin (http://957thespin.com).