Storm End Tourney Run With Loss in Finals

FORT SMITH, Ark. – Tori Kilburn turned in a game-high 27 points but Southeastern was unable to recover from a cold shooting first half in a 71-64 loss to Northwestern Oklahoma State in the finals of the Great American Conference Tournament on Sunday afternoon in Fort Smith, Ark.
 
The loss brings the 2025-26 season to an end with an 18-13 record.
 
Kilburn and Kenzli Warden earned spots on the GAC All-Tournament team following their efforts leading the Storm to its second-straight conference tournament final.
 
Kilburn shot 7-of-11 from the field and added a 13-of-16 effort at the free throw line to post 27 points, her 17^th 20-point game of the season. She also led the Storm on the boards with eight rebounds.
 
Warden finished the game with eight points and seven rebounds and finished the tournament playing all 40 minutes of all three games.
 
Mackenzie Espinosa connected on a trio of threes, half of the team's six made threes, and finished the game with nine points.
 
Abbie Barr dropped eight points in just her second appearance since suffering an injury to begin the month of February.
 
Stevie Stinchcomb and Akiera Hawk closed out the game with six points apiece.
 
Kilburn and Stinchcomb handed out three assists each, while Hawk recorded three blocked shots.
 
Kilburn connected on a layup and Espinosa hit a three to open the game inside of the first minute and the Storm held a 7-3 lead two minutes into the game.
 
The Rangers followed with a 9-0 run, taking a 12-7 lead, and the teams traded buckets over the final four minutes with Warden hitting a jumper at the horn to cut the deficit tot 19-16 at the first quarter break.
 
The game hovered within one possession for half of the second quarter, with all eight points over that span coming from Kilburn before NWOSU used an 8-0 run to take a 10-point lead.
 
Espinosa would sink a three to end the run, but the Rangers scored last in the half and the Storm trailed 36-37 at the midway point.
 
SE got the first three points of the third quarter, but the Rangers followed with six-straight to take a 42-30 lead by the 5:42 mark of the period.
 
Southeastern answered with eight straight points and an 11-2 run that featured threes from Espinosa and Barr and was capped by a Kilburn three-point play, closing the gap to 44-41 with 2:32 to play in the third.
 
NWOSU scored five of the final eight points to take a 49-44 lead into the fourth quarter.
 
Warden hit a pair of free throws to open the final frame by closing to within three points, but the Rangers responded with a 10-2 run to take a double-digit lead with six minutes to play.
 
The lead hovered between eight and 11 points until NWOSU scored five-straight to take its biggest lead of the day at 69-55.
 
Southeastern closed out the contest on a 9-2 run to close the final tally to 71-64.