SE Falls in GAC Opener Versus Reddies

ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – Cold shooting from beyond the arc and a tough night on the boards combined to lead Southeastern to a 91-58 loss in the Great American Conference opener on Thursday night against Henderson State in Arkadelphia, Ark.
 
The loss drops the Savage Storm to 3-4 overall on the year and 0-1 in league play heading into a Saturday afternoon matchup against Ouachita Baptist at 1 pm.
 
Kenzli Warden was the only SE player to finish in double-figures, putting gup 13 points, while Tori Kilburn was next in line with nine.
 
Akiera Hawk and Mackenzie Espinosa each finished with eight, while Halli Hyatt and Abbie Barr put up six apiece.
 
Barr handed out a team-high four assists with Hyatt right behind with three, while Warden and Espinosa each grabbed five rebounds to lead the Storm who were outrebounded 44-to-27 on the night.
 
Southeastern was able to hit seven threes on the night, but did so by shooting 26.9 percent, well below its over 40 percent shooting efforts through the first six games and not enough to offset a 46.7 percent performance by HSU which drained 14 threes for the contest.
 
Barr opened the game with a three and the Storm opened the game with a 5-0 lead after a pair of Warden free throws.
 
SE maintained the lead on a Hawk jumper and a Kilburn three-point play, holding a 10-5 edge by the 7:30 mark.
 
HSU finished the quarter on a 19-7 run and the Storm trailed 24-17 at the end of the first period.
 
SE closed the gap to five points out of the gate in the second quarter, but HSU answered with a 9-2 run and extended its lead to 33-21 by the 6:54 mark of the quarter.
 
The Storm trimmed the deficit back to single digits, but a final 8-2 run to end the half left Southeastern in a 44-30 hole at the half.
 
The Reddies opened the second half on a 19-5 run, extending its lead to 63-35. SE followed with a Connie Hughes jumper and an Espinosa three to end the run, and would end the third quarter trailing 68-43.
 
SE chipped away at the deficit over the first half of the fourth quarter, closing the gap to 21 points on a pair of Espinosa free throws, but the Reddies finished the contest on a 14-2 run to fashion the 91-58 final.