at Southern Indiana (9-6, 5-2 GLVC): 63
Drury (9-5, 5-1 GLVC): 59
Box Score

EVANSVILLE, Ind.—Senior guard Ellen Young had a game-clinching free throw and steal in the final 10 seconds of regulation Thursday evening as the University of Southern Indiana women's basketball team overcame a six-point halftime deficit to defeat Drury University, 63-59, in a Great Lakes Valley Conference showdown at the Physical Activities Center.

In a game that came down to the final two possessions, the Screaming Eagles battled back-and-forth with the visiting Panthers in the final 10 minutes of the game, with neither team gaining any sort of decisive edge.

USI (9-6, 5-2 GLVC), which used an 11-1 run to start the second half, took a 57-55 lead when junior guard/forward Kristin Raker hit a three-pointer with 6:29 to play. Young, who finished with a game-high 22 points, hit a jumper 40 seconds later to extend the Eagles' advantage to four points.

After the Panthers (9-5, 5-1 GLVC) cut the Eagles' cushion in half 20 seconds later, the two teams went scoreless for the next four-and-a-half minutes of the contest.

Young's free throw with 57 seconds left on the clock gave USI a 60-57 lead, but a bucket by Drury sophomore forward Sara Jane Plemmons 16 seconds later cut USI's advantage to a single digit.

Two free throws by senior guard Amie Newhart, who finished with 11 points and six assists, gave the Eagles a 62-59 advantage with 29 seconds left in the contest. Newhart, who started the 100th consecutive game of her career Thursday, recorded her 300th career assist, making her just the second player in school history to score 1,000 points and dish out 300 assists in a career.

After forcing Drury into a turnover during the next possession, Newhart missed the front end of a one-and-one free throw attempt—USI was 5-of-15 at the free throw line as a team. Senior forward/center Courtney Perry, however, deflected the ball off a Drury player on the ensuing rebound, giving the Eagles' possession with just over 10 seconds to play.

Young was fouled on the inbounds play and made 1-of-2 shots at the free throw line to make the game a two-possession contest. Young intercepted a pass by Drury freshman forward Casey Carroll in the final seconds to seal the victory for the Eagles.

In addition to Young, Raker finished with 14 points and five rebounds, while Perry added four points and a game-high nine rebounds. Plemmons led the Panthers with 12 points and five rebounds.

USI, which shot 54.2 percent from the field in the second half, returns to action Saturday at 1 p.m. when it travels to Quincy, Illinois, to take on No. 23 Quincy University. The Lady Hawks (13-1, 5-1 GLVC) defeated the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, 72-61, Thursday in Quincy.