Oklahoma Panhandle State University

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 Goodwell, Okla.—Both the men's and women's basketball teams of Panhandle State raised their games in two strong second-half efforts against the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith.  Despite Thursday night's improved performances, both contests ended in defeat for the Aggies; the Lions claimed victory over the women's team 75-60 and the men's team fell by a score of 102-82.

The Aggie women doubled their first-half point total, putting up a combined 40 points between the third and fourth periods; they outscored the Lions 21-17 in the third and 19-16 in the fourth. Panhandle averaged 29.4 percent from the field before the break; after halftime, shooting improved to 38 percent.

Hannah Whitaker and Monti Regier were leading producers for the Aggie offense totaling 12 and 11 points respectively; Regier added nine points from three-point range and Whitaker went 4-4 from the line. Denise Levine totaled ten points with two shots coming from beyond the arc. The Lions' Sydney Franklin held the game-high with 19 points, landing four three-pointers in the game.

Fort Smith's Tamera Gulley led the game at the boards with 12 rebounds and also had a game-high of four steals and two blocks. For the Aggies Johlicia Williams took down nine rebounds followed by Addison Munsch with seven. Munsch contributed four assists on the night, along with teammate Taylor Acosta who also led the Aggies with four assists and three steals.

Coach Charles Terry was proud of how his team competed. He commented on the improvements after halftime stating, "We pretty much slept through the first half, but came back with a lot more energy in the second half." UAFS currently sits third in the Heartland Conference ranks with a 13-9 overall record; the Aggies own a 1-18 record on the season.

While the Aggie men's team fell behind by as much as 13 points in the first half, they fought their way back to within four points (27-23) by the 6:53 mark. The Lions maintained a strong 53.3 percent shooting average and went into the break with a ten-point advantage (46-36). The second half got off to a slow start for the Aggies as Fort Smith went on a 15-0 run and took a 25-point lead (67-42) in the first six minutes of play.

Both teams took to a three-point attack in the second half and each improved from their first-half shooting performances. The Aggies landed nine shots from beyond the arc and the Lions averaged 68.4 percent hitting 13-19 from three-point range after the break. Panhandle's Bowen Nyberg was big from the bench knocking down three-of-three long distance shots in a three minute span. For the game, the Lions shot 56.7 percent from the field and averaged 51.5 percent beyond the arc. The Aggies, who averaged just under 40 percent in both categories, shot well at the line averaging 81.8 percent hitting 18-22 free throws.

Leading scorers for the Aggies were Jace Kerr with 18 points and Pierre Roddy who totaled 17 points; Sita Sesay earned the games only double-double on ten points and a game-high of 11 rebounds. Fort Smith's Seth Youngblood put up a game-high of 29 points and had six three-pointers in the game, three in each half. The Lions leading rebounders were Kyree Elder and DaVaunta Thomas with eight and seven boards apiece; Thomas also offered a game-high of five assists in the game. Kerr brought down six boards as the Aggies' second-leading rebounder and Roddy led the team in steals with three.

Jerry Olson commented after the game, "UAFS played well and shot well. Youngblood really took over and started making plays and penetrating when things got close in the first half." The Aggies' head coach added, "We didn't move as quickly in the zone; we had our hands down and let them shoot. They (UAFS) had 13 threes in the second half and you can't win many games against that." Olson saw improvement from their last meeting with the Lions saying, "Our guys stayed with it and didn't give up. We showed more toughness and better rebounding tonight than when we played them at home."

In a tight conference race, Fort Smith ranks fourth with a 14-10 record and seven wins within the league; the Aggies hold a 5-16 season record and will be back on the court Saturday for more Heartland Conference action. Panhandle plays host to Rogers State with the women's game starting at 1 p.m. and the men tip off at three.