Posted: Feb 28, 2025
IRVING, Texas --Despite trailing trailing for over 32 minutes of game action, the Gold Division's second-seeded Texas Lutheran Bulldogs earned a hard-fought 63-55 overtime victory over upset-minded and Blue Division third-seeded University of the Ozarks on Friday afternoon in the fist quarterfinal of the 2025 SCAC Women's Basketball Tournament. Official Tournament Website | Photo Gallery | Postgame Interview | Women's Tournament Stats
HOW IT HAPPENED
- University of the Ozarks jumped out to an early 9-4 lead about midway through the first quarter thanks to a layup from Abby Beene.
- Texas Lutheran responded and took the lead at the 3:30 mark of the first quarter after a layup from Zaria Solis.
- From there, the Eagles closed the first period on a 5-0 run to take a 17-13 lead.
- Dalena Fisher pushed the Ozarks lead to 22-13 on a transition 3-pointer just over two minutes into the second quarter.
- Jaslynn Marsh connected from beyond the arc to push the Eagle lead to a game-high 11 points at 27-16 midway through the second.
- A pair of Bulldog free throws from Kailee Mulkey cut the Eagle lead to 32-24 at halftime.
- Texas Lutheran responded with an 8-0 run to start thte third quarter that tied the game thanks to a Angelina Sotelo transition three-pointer at the 6:15-mark.
- A Lauren Sansano jumper gave Texas Lutheran its first lead since the first quarter as the Bulldogs took a slim 36-35 lead with just over a minute to play in the third quarter.
- The fourth quarter saw a back-and-forth affair as the two teams each struggled to put the game out of reach.
- A three-pointer from Ozarks' Kelsey Ground gave the Eagles a four point lead (47-43) midway through the fourth quarter. That four point lead was the largest lead for either team the entire quarter.
- Mulkey gave the Bulldogs a 50-49 lead with 2:28 to play in regulation after connecting on one of two free throws.
- TLU's Sarahi Jones made a pair of free throws to tie the game at 52-52 with just 25 seconds left in regulation. Ozarks then called timeout and then was not able to convert a potential game-winning layup. That set the stage for the Bulldogs to potentially win the game. However, a missed tip-in with five seconds remaining led to a scramble where Texas Lutheran's Jones missed a potential game-winning three-pointer as time expired and forced overtime.
- The Bulldogs opened up the overtime period on a 6-0 run to take a 58-52 lead midway through the extra session. From that point, the Eagles were only able to cut the lead to as low as five points before Texas Lutheran pulled away for the winning margin.
- The game saw four ties and seven lead changes throughout the matchup.
- Ozarks held a commanding edge in time with the lead as the Eagles led for a total fo 32:31 compared to the Bulldogs 8:33 of lead time.
- Texas Lutheran outrebouned Ozarks by a 59-43 margin, including a commanding 24-6 edge on the offensive glass.
OZARKS STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
- Kelsey Ground: 14 points, 3 rebounds, 5-of-10 FG's, 4-of-8 3FG's, 2 assists, 2 steals
- Dalena Fisher: 11 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists
- Naomi Smith: 16 points, 21 rebounds,
TEXAS LUTHERAN STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
- Kailee Mulkey: 22 points, 11 rebounds (6 offensive rebounds), 3 assists, 4 steals
- Zaria Solis: 17 points, 15 rebounds (11 offensive rebounds) 7-of-16 FG's
- Angelina Sotelo: 12 points, 4-of-10 3FG's, 8 rebounds, 2 assists
NOTABLES
- University of the Ozarks' Naomi Smith became just the third player in SCAC tournament history to record 20 or more rebounds in a single game. Her 21 rebounds tie her with Millsaps' Janice Okeke, who collected 21 on February 24, 2012. The 21 rebounds are just one shy of the single-game tournament record of 22 set last year by Colorado College's Zoe Tomlinson.
- Friday's game marked the first SCAC tournament meeting between these two teams.
- Texas Lutheran improved to 13-5 all-time in SCAC postseason play.
- With Friday's win, Texas Lutheran advances to the semifinal round for the seventh straight year and the 11th time in program history. The Blue Division's top-seeded Coloroado College awaits Texas Lutheran in the semifinals, setting up the third SCAC tournament meeting between the two. The Bulldogs hold a 2-0 record in such matchups, with the last one coming in the last year's semifinals.
- University of the Ozarks ends its season with a 13-13 record.
UP NEXT
Texas Lutheran (21-4) advances to take on the Blue Division's top-seed in Colorado College in Saturday's first women's semifinal. Tip-off is scheduled for 12 p.m. CT.
