at Indiana State (2-0 Exh.): 65
Southern Indiana (0-1 Exh.): 48
Box Score

TERRE HAUTE, Ind.—The University of Southern Indiana women's basketball team was held to a .269 shooting percentage as it fell to Indiana State University, 65-48, in an exhibition contest Sunday afternoon.

After falling behind 10-0 early in the contest, the Screaming Eagles answered with a 10-0 run to pull even with the host Sycamores with 11 minutes to play in the opening period.

Sophomore guard Rinesha Soaper and senior forward Anaris Sickles combined for the first seven points of the run, while junior guard Lauren Meneghetti drained a three-pointer to pull the Eagles into the 10-10 tie.

USI (0-1 Exhibition), however, went cold from the field throughout the next four-and-a-half minutes as Indiana State used an 11-0 run to build a double-digit advantage.

The Eagles trimmed Indiana State's lead to seven later in the half, but a 7-2 spurt gave the Sycamores their largest advantage of the first period (12) before settling for a 33-23 halftime lead.

Indiana State (2-0 Exhibition) opened the second half with five straight points to build a 15-point cushion, then turned back a short USI spurt by going on a 16-6 run to build its largest lead of the game (54-33) with eight minutes to play in the contest.

Soaper was one of three players to lead the Eagles with nine points. Junior guard Amie Newhart and sophomore forward/center Ashton Mertens both chipped in nine points, while junior guard Ellen Young added eight points and matched Mertens with a team-high seven rebounds.

Senior guard Kelsey Luna led the Sycamores with 14 points and four steals, while sophomore center Shannon Thomas had 11 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Sophomore guard/forward Deja Mattox added 12 points

“It's a great experience for us to come up here and get a game against a team as good as Indiana State,” USI Head Coach Rick Stein said. “They have an experienced club back and I knew we'd get the kind of competition we wanted.

“This won't do anything but help us for what's going to happen in a week when we go on the road,” Stein continued. “This was a great opportunity for us to get better and I think we did that today.”

The Eagles resume regular-season play next Sunday when they travel to Detroit, Michigan, to visit Midwest Region foe Wayne State University. Tip-off is slated for noon (CST).