After the No. 20 Freed-Hardeman University Lady Lions took the first win against the No. 15 University of the Cumberlands (Ky.), the Patriots evened the series by defeating the Lady Lions 70-58.
The first quarter was a good one for the Lady Lions, (19-6, 5-4 MSC) with KJ White and Kaylee Odom connecting for layups before FHU stepped outside the line for a pair of 3-pointers from White followed by Brooklyn Crouch. White’s layup on the fast break gave the Lady Lions a 14-7 edge with 4:01 remaining in the first quarter. Crouch tallied a second 3-pointer in the final minute to give the Lady Lions their largest lead at eight before the Patriots cut into the lead to end the quarter with FHU leading 19-14.
The second quarter shifted toward Cumberlands’ (17-7, 5-4 MSC) way with the Patriots out-scoring the Lady Lions 22-8. Kalea Fleming-Eckerle and Rahcel Satterly both knocked down triples, but those were the only field goals in the quarter, seeing the Lady Lions trail 36—27 at halftime.
The middle of the third quarter got interesting with UC and FHU sharing five consecutive made 3-pointers, but the Lady Lions still needed to gain 10 points in the fourth quarter trailing 51-41.
Unfortunately for the girls in maroon, both teams were bucketing points in the final quarter where, despite a 5-0 run to wrap up the game, still ended in defeat for FHU 70-58.
The Lady Lions shot 38% from the floor while the Patriots were 24-49 from the field to average 49%.
Kaylee Odom and KJ White led FHU’s offense with both earning 14 points, while Rachel Satterly chipped in with 12 points. White also led FHU with five rebounds while Kelsey Bender had a team-high three assists.
Up Next – One more road game awaits the Lady Lions on their massive road trip, visiting the Phoenix of Cumberland (Tenn.) University on Thursday, February 15 at 5:30 p.m.
FHU will finally return to Henderson to host the No. 3 Campbellsville (Ky.) University Tigers on Saturday, February 17 at 1 p.m.
