GOODWELL, Okla. — Mar'kia Pratt scored 14 of her game-high 21 points in the fourth quarter Saturday afternoon as the Oklahoma Panhandle State women's basketball team (5-12, 2-9 SAC) overcame an 11-point deficit to defeat Southwestern Christian University (8-8, 5-7) at home, 61-54.
OPSU trailed 44-37 through three periods of a defensive struggle inside Anchor D Arena before turning on the jets.
Tryssa Dowd was fed by
Heidi Rodriguez for a layup 11 seconds into the fourth frame, and Rodriguez cashed in on a three-pointer a possession later, cutting the deficit to two.
Pratt then tied things up on a layup and promptly hit a driving jumper to put the Aggies in front for the first time, 46-44, with 7:24 to go. The run was not nearly over, as Dowd finished through contact moments later and converted on the three-point play. Two trips down the court later, Dowd nabbed a defensive board, which Pratt turned into a fastbreak opportunity with her aggressiveness, making another layup that opened up a 51-44 OPSU lead.
SCU did not go away quietly following the extended 15-0 Aggie run, though. The Eagles promptly embarked on a 7-0 surge themselves, beginning with a three-pointer and ending on two points off a turnover that tied things at 51 with 3:59 remaining.
Pratt, however, continued to stay hot by pouring in six quick points as Panhandle State went back ahead, 59-54, with under a minute to spare. Two possessions later at that same score, SCU missed a three-pointer which was rebounded by Dowd and pushed ahead to Pratt, who put the exclamation point on the comeback victory with an open layup.
The Eagles began Saturday shooting 60% from the field in the first quarter as they led 18-11. Panhandle State won the second quarter by four with balanced scoring to make it a three-point game at halftime. Coming off the bench,
La'Tommas Johnson-Nash had a team-high six points through 20 minutes, with
Jamie Baum also recording four to help lead the reserves to 15 of the Aggies' 28 points.
A jumper by Dowd made it a one-point game early in the third frame, but SCU had increased its advantage back to 10 points at 42-32 with 4:24 left in the quarter. Three free throws from Pratt and a long jumper by Reece closed the deficit to seven by the end of period, providing momentum for OPSU's fourth-quarter rally.
Pratt notched a game-high five assists to go with her 21 in the scoring column. Dowd added 14 for the Aggies, while Reece was active with seven rebounds and two steals. Johnson-Nash finished with a solid line of six points, six rebounds, three assists and a steal.
The win for Panhandle State snapped a 12-game losing streak to SCU, and it marked the first time the Aggies have won consecutive conference games (excluding forfeits) since the 2020-21 season.
What's up next: The Aggies try for a third straight win when they head on the road for a single-game trip Monday at Wayland Baptist (7-9, 6-5 SAC). Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.
