(sortable) | Box Score (html)
at Southern Indiana (7-10, 1-8 GLVC): 58
Saint Joseph's (11-6, 5-4 GLVC): 55

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EVANSVILLE, Ind.—Senior guard/forward Kristin Raker drained a pair of late free throws and the Screaming Eagles got a stop at the defensive end as the University of Southern Indiana women's basketball secured a 58-55 win over Great Lakes Valley East Division foe Saint Joseph's College Saturday afternoon at the Physical Activities Center.

USI (7-10, 1-8 GLVC), which scored the game's first 12 points and led 14-1 after holding the visiting Pumas without a field goal for the first nine minutes of regulation, saw its lead evaporate when Saint Joseph's senior guard Tatiana Ortiz got her layup to drop with 50 seconds left in the first half.

The Screaming Eagles, who never trailed in the contest, got a three-pointer from sophomore guard Stephanie Carpenter as time expired to break the game's only tie and take a 27-24 lead into the intermission.

Freshman forward/center Mary O'Keefe (Edwardsville, Illinois), who finished with nine points and seven rebounds, hit a layup and Carpenter followed with another three-pointer as the Eagles extended their lead to 32-24 a minute into the second half.

Saint Joseph's (11-6, 5-4 GLVC), which shot just 27.9 percent (17-61) from the field and 21.2 percent (7-33) from three-point range, used a 7-0 run later in the period to cut the Eagles advantage to a single point (37-36) with less than 11 minutes to play.

O'Keefe, who scored seven of her nine points in the second period, drained a free throw and a layup in the next minute to give the Eagles a four-point edge; then freshman forward Brooke Valentine hit a shot in the paint to give the Eagles a 42-36 lead with 10 minutes remaining in the contest.

The Pumas, who forced the Eagles into 20 turnovers, cut USI's advantage to a single digit with just over five minutes to play, but a three-pointer by Carpenter with 4:40 to play turned Saint Joseph's away, yet again, and gave the Eagles a 51-47 edge.

After both teams missed golden opportunities to change the complexion of the contest at the free throw line, a layup by Saint Joseph's senior guard Montrell Mills with 26 seconds remaining in the contest once again cut the Eagles' advantage to a single digit.

Following a Saint Joseph's timeout, the Eagles played a little keep away from the Pumas as they drained nearly 10 seconds off the clock before Raker was fouled and sent to the charity stripe for two shots, which she converted to give the Eagles' a 58-55 lead.

Senior guard Brittany Cruse had a look with five seconds remaining to tie the contest, but her three-pointer did not connect as USI senior guard Cootie Leeberg picked up the rebound as time expired to ensure the Eagles' first league win of the season.

USI had four players finish with at least nine points, with sophomore forward/center Nicole Hazemi finishing with a team-high 11 points and seven rebounds. Raker and Carpenter each had nine points, while freshman guard Taylor Stevenson matched Hazemi and O'Keefe with a team-leading seven rebounds.

USI, which out-rebounded the Pumas 44-40, returns to action Thursday at 4:45 p.m. (CST) when it travels to Louisville, Kentucky, to take on East Division rival Bellarmine University.