Southeastern Stumbles at OBU

Box Score ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – Despite a season-best 29 points from Emily Williams, Southeastern was unable to overcome 19 turnovers and a 62.5 percent shooting effort by Ouachita Baptist in the second half as the Savage Storm fell 85-75 on Thursday night in Arkadelphia, Ark.
 
The loss drops SE to 10-7 overall on the year and 7-4 in Great American Conference play.  It also drops the Storm road record to 2-6 on the season.
 
Williams turned in one of her best performances of the season, scoring her 29 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the field, 3-of-5 from behind the arc and 6-of-8 from the free throw line.  It is her fifth 20-point game of the season, second in-a-row and third in her last four outings.
 
Shelby Hill joined her in double-figures with 11 points off a 3-for-6 effort from three point range, while Haley Schaefer added eight and the duo of Cheree Kiser and Ronay English each chipped in seven.
 
Schaefer and Taylor Richards each dished out four assists to lead the team.
 
Schafer also led the way in rebounds with seven, while Williams added five and SE was outrebounded for just the sixth time this season, 35-to-30.
 
OBU led the way in every specialty category, but it was the 29-7 edge in points off turnovers that proved to be the biggest difference in a game decided by 10 points.
 
The game was even out of the gate, with SE jumping in front first before the teams traded a pair of ties and a pair of lead changes, the last of these ties coming on a Kaylie Baxter jumper with 14:50 to go in the half to make the score 12-12.
 
The Tigers then reeled off seven-straight points to take the largest lead of the game to that point.
 
SE would whittle that lead down and eventually regain the advantage on a Williams three with 7:26 to play in the first half, going up 26-25.
 
OBU would regain the lead on their next possession and hold it until a Hill three fell with 1:56 to play in the half to give the Storm a 38-37 lead, but the Tigers would score the final five points to take a 42-38 lead into halftime.
 
The second half saw OBU stretch its lead to double digits in the first five minutes, with that lead growing as large as 15 points as late as the 5:37 mark of the second half.
 
SE would claw at the deficit and close it to eight points with just under a minute to play, but that was as close as they would get as the Tigers would push the final tally to 85-75.