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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Hala'Api'Api leads
Lions to third straight conference victory The win is the Lions' third straight in the MIAA and improves their record to 12-3 overall and 3-3 in conference play. SBU is now also 12-3 and 4-2 in the MIAA. Trailing 55-54, Ela Zawadka got open underneath and drew a foul and then stepped up and hit two big free throws to give the Lions a one-point advantage with 1:17 remaining. The Lions then forced a miss on the other end and Fatai rebounded a Lion miss and put in a hook shot that put Southern up 58-55 with just 35 seconds left. SBU had ample opportunities to draw even, but missed four consecutive three-pointers in the final seconds. Leading 36-24 at the half, Lindsey Davis drained a trey to give the Lions a 39-24 advantage 19 seconds into the second before the Lady Bearcats made their way back into the contest. Kelly Reinkemeyer and Erica Souza combined for all 12 points of a 12-3 SBU run that pulled the Lady Bearcats to within 41-38 with 14:58 remaining. SBU then climbed to within one at 46-45 on a three-pointer from Courtney Creed with 11:16 left. Southern stayed ahead at that point and jumped back up by eight after a layup by Fatai capped an 8-2 spurt to put the Lions ahead 54-46. But the Lady Bearcats refused to go away and grabbed the lead for the first time in the second half by out-scoring the Lions 9-0 over the next 5:35 to lead 55-54 on a jumper by Creed with 2:12 left. SBU jumped ahead in the first half by six on two occasions, with the last being 16-10 on a score from Katelin Cutbirth. Fatai helped keep Southern close in the early going by scoring 10 of the Lions' first 12 points. MSSU then took charge in the first half with a 22-0 explosion that was capped by a three-pointer from Ivaney Marquez that gave the Lions a 32-16 lead with 4:45 left in the first half. The Lions' defense fueled the run by holding SBU scoreless on 0-of-7 shooting over the 8:28 stretch. Lindsey Davis nailed two jumpers and knocked down a pair of free throws during that span to lead the spurt for the Lions. Davis also reached double-figures for the Lions with a career-high 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting. Pierce scored 13 on 6-of-7 from the floor. Reinkemeyer led the Lady Bearcats with 17, including 7-of-9 from the free throw line. Shewmaker added 15 and Creed scored 11. The Lions out-shot SBU 46.3 percent (25-of-54) to 36.8 percent (21-of-57) and also held a commanding 41-27 edge in rebounds. MSSU will conclude its brief two-game homestand by hosting current No. 19-ranked Emporia State on Wednesday evening (Jan. 23) at 5:30 p.m.
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