CLAREMORE, Okla. – The No. 13 Rogers State women's basketball team was unable to hold onto its halftime lead over No. 2 OCU as the Stars registered the 78-66 comeback win at the Claremore Expo on Saturday afternoon.
The Stars opened the game with an 8-2 run but the Hillcats answered with an 11-0 spurt capped off by an Ariani Silva three-pointer from the left elbow to take a five-point lead with 13:43 to play in the first half. RSU clung to the advantage the rest of the stanza, leading by as many as 10 points. OCU closed the half on a 5-0 run to cut the Hillcat advantage to 39-34 at intermission. Silva led the Hillcats in the opening frame with a game-high 16 points.
The teams opened the second stanza trading buckets but the Stars took over with a 14-6 run to take their first lead of the second half, 51-49. Logan Froese knotted the score on the next possession with a put-back jumper from the charity stripe and became the all-time leading scorer in RSU women's basketball history. The Stars held the Cats scoreless over the next five minutes and built an 11-point lead. The OCU's lead swelled to 15 points with one minute remaining but the Hillcats fought to the end, burning just 30 seconds off the clock during their 5-0 run. However, the Stars sealed the victory at the free throw line, holding onto the double digit lead.
Silva finished with a team-high 18 points and Rician Walker registered 13 points. Froese tallied 12 points in route to breaking the career scoring record. The senior from Claremore, Okla. has 1,137 career points, surpassing Hunter Peterson (2007-2011) who tallied 1,132 career points. Sierra Cornwell grabbed two steals in the first four minutes of the game to break her own single-season record for steal she set last season. The Preston, Okla. native now has 119 nabs on the year. Leah Smith tallied eight points and Kelby Fritz rounded out the group of seniors in their final game at the Claremore Expo with two points and one assist.
OCU dominated the boards 50-35 as Desiree Jeffries finished with a double-double, hauling in 12 rebounds and 17 points. Kayla MacKenzie led all scorers with 25 points and Lauren Gober rounded out OCU's double digit scorers with 14 points.
With the win, OCU tallied a perfect 16-0 record in Sooner Athletic Conference play and the Hillcats locked up third place in the standings, one game behind Lubbock Christian who finished third.
Rogers State (22-8, 12-4) will travel to the Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament in Shawnee, Okla. hosted by Oklahoma Baptist starting Wednesday, Feb. 27 and finishing with the championship game on Saturday, March 2. Seeding and tournament times will be announced Sunday, Feb. 24 by the conference commissioner. RSU Radio 91.3FM and the Hillcat Network (www.rsuhillcats.com/live) will provide live play-by-play of all the Hillcats' action in the tournament.
