Kilburn, Warden Power SE to Win over UAFS

DURANT, Okla. – Tori Kilburn and Kenzli Warden combined for 46 points to pace all scorers on Saturday as Southeastern picked up its second-straight win, this time topping Arkansas-Fort Smith, 86-74, in Bloomer Sullivan Arena.
 
The win evens the Savage Storm record at 2-2 on the season as it takes to the road one more time before Thanksgiving as it faces Midwestern State at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 25 in Wichita Falls, Texas.
 
The win is also the 299^th victory at Southeastern for Head Coach Darin Grover who will be looking to hit the 300-win mark with his next victory.
 
Kilburn led the way offensively in the contest with 24 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the floor and adding a 10-of-13 effort from the free throw line.
 
Kenzli Warden added 22 points in the effort, hitting a pair of threes and going 6-of-7 at the charity stripe.
 
Mackenzie Espinosa came off the bench to add 10 in the win, while Akiera Hawk was just short of double digits with nine in the game.
 
Kilburn and Espinosa each logged double-doubles on the afternoon, with each player hauling in a game-high 10 rebounds.
 
The Storm outrebounded the Lions 43-to-35 as a team.
 
Halli Hyatt dished out a game-best five assists, with Hawk handing out four dimes to help SE to 20 as a team.
 
A Kilburn jumper and a Hawk three gave the Storm a 5-0 lead out of the gate, but UAFS would answer with a 12-5 run to take a 12-10 lead by the 5:04 mark of the quarter.
 
Espinosa then connected on a three to regain the lead which the Storm pushed to as many as six points before taking a 22-21 lead into the quarter break.
 
The second quarter featured four ties and four lead changes over the first six minutes, with SE regaining the lead on a Kilburn bucket and pushing its advantage to six points on a Hawk jumper with 1:27 to go in the half, eventually taking a 43-39 lead into the break.
 
Southeastern opened the third quarter on an 8-2 run capped by a Warden jumper to take the first double-digit lead of the day at 51-41.
 
That lead would stretch to 14 points by the 1:14 mark on an Espinosa bucket, before heading to the final period with a 64-52 lead.
 
The edge ballooned to 17 points two minutes into the fourth quarter, but UAFS answered and cut the deficit to 13 points over the next minute.
 
Southeastern answer with a pair of Kilburn free throws and a Katie Allen three to extend the lead back to 18 points.
 
It would hit 18 points twice more, the last coming with 3:15 to play, followed by UAFS closing the game with six-straight points to make the final score 86-74 in favor of the Storm.