EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women's Basketball displayed a hearty performance on Thursday evening when the Screaming Eagles battled first-place Eastern Illinois University into overtime, but the Ohio Valley Conference-leading Panthers came away with the 67-62 win.
 
Southern Indiana sophomore guard Vanessa Shafford (Linton, Indiana) paced the Screaming Eagles in the contest with a career-high 24 points and a career-best six triples. The nation's top three-point shooter came through in big moments for the Screaming Eagles on Thursday while playing 42 minutes in the game.
 
Shafford jumpstarted Southern Indiana with a corner three-pointer and a mid-range jumper to give USI an early 5-0 lead in the first quarter. Meanwhile, USI's defense also started strong, forcing Eastern Illinois into a 0-for-5 start from the field. Around the halfway point of the first period, and USI ahead 7-2, Eastern Illinois went on an 11-0 run to take a 13-7 lead. USI senior forward Hannah Haithcock (Washington Courthouse, Ohio), who also had a big game with 21 points for USI, snapped the scoring run for the Panthers with a layup inside. Eastern Illinois led 17-11 after the opening 10 minutes.
 
Both defenses buckled down to begin the second quarter, as each side went scoreless past the first two minutes of the second. After Eastern Illinois pushed its lead to 29-20 with under two minutes left in the first half, USI went on a 7-0 run to finish the quarter and the half to cut EIU's lead down to two, 29-27, at the intermission. Southern Indiana's late second-quarter run was driven by a pair of makes from Shafford and one by Haithcock, as both players crossed over into double figures during the stretch.
 
In the opening minutes of the third period, Haithcock picked up right where she left off from the end of the first half. The senior tied the game on a pair of occasions. USI's defense continued its stout performance in the third, challenging shots from the Panthers. With 3:17 left in the third, Eastern Illinois went up by five, but USI junior forward Meredith Raley (Haubstadt, Indiana) answered on the next two makes from the field for the Screaming Eagles to bring USI within one, 38-37. USI tied the contest 39-39 before entering the fourth quarter.
 
In USI's first possession of the fourth quarter, Haithcock cashed in to give USI its first lead since midway in the first quarter. Her bucket put USI up 41-39. The Screaming Eagles' momentum continued, as Shafford buried two triples to push USI in front, 47-41, with 8:28 remaining in the fourth. Midway into the fourth quarter, Eastern Illinois went on an 11-0 run to go up by five, 52-47. Then Shafford and USI responded, as the sophomore drilled two threes to make it a one-point game, 54-53, with EIU ahead and 1:57 left in the quarter. Raley put USI back in front on the next possession with a three-point play, 56-54. Eastern Illinois tied the game at 56 with 28 seconds left. The teams remained tied at 56 to force overtime.
 
In the extra frame, EIU scored first before Shafford tied the contest back up at 58. The Panthers went back ahead with under three minutes left in overtime, but again, USI answered on a layup by Haithcock and tied the game at 60. With just over a minute remaining, Eastern Illinois went ahead 62-60 on a pair of free throws. Even though USI was able to make it a one-possession game with 15 seconds left, Eastern Illinois closed out the game in the final seconds.
 
Shafford's 24 points and Haithcock's 21 tallies marked the third time this season that USI had two players score 20 or more in the game. The other two instances came in the non-conference season. Shafford was 9-16 from the field with five rebounds, while Haithcock went 8-13 from the floor with seven boards. Raley finished with 11 points in the contest. Southern Indiana was 21-for-50 for 42 percent overall on the evening with six triples. The Screaming Eagles went 14-for-16 at the stripe.
 
Eastern Illinois was led in the game by the OVC's scoring leader in senior guard Lariah Washington. Washington recorded 14 points, but USI's defense held the senior to 4-19 shooting and 1-6 from three.  The Panthers had three other players finish in double figures. Southern Indiana's defense almost held EIU to a season-low shooting from the floor, but the Panthers managed to go 22-for-66 overall for 33 percent. EIU was limited to 3-for-23 night from three for 13 percent, but Eastern Illinois was 20-for-24 for 83 percent at the foul line. Eastern Illinois claimed 46 rebounds compared to USI's 31.
 
With Thursday's result, USI's record moved to 9-11 overall and 3-6 in the Ohio Valley Conference. Eastern Illinois improved its record to 17-3 on the season and 9-0 in the OVC to remain in first place in the standings.
 
Next up, USI will travel Saturday at 1 p.m. for the second conference meeting against the University of Tennessee at Martin. The game can be seen live with a subscription to ESPN+ and heard on 95.7 FM The Spin (http://957thespin.com).