PDF Box Score | HTML Box Score & Play-by-Play

JACKSONVILLE, Ala. – A valiant second-half comeback effort by the Southeast Missouri women's basketball team fell short as Jacksonville State edged the Redhawks 60-57 at Pete Mathews Coliseum on Saturday night.

The loss eliminates the Redhawks (10-17, 4-10 Ohio Valley) from qualifying for the OVC Tournament.

“It's inexcusable what happened tonight,” Southeast head coach Ty Margenthaler said. “Win or lose, my frustration is that Jacksonville State wanted it more than us. I give a lot of credit to JSU, they played hard and smart. They outplayed us and made shots when they needed to. You can't have that on the road against anyone. I feel sorry for our seniors, they'll go four years without experiencing postseason play. We definitely have a lot of growing to do from here.”

Kara Wright opened the scoring just over a minute into the game, but JSU (1-26, 1-14 OVC) countered with six-straight points, all on layups from posts Danielle Vaughn and Miranda Cantrell. Wright got to the rim for a layup that ended the spurt, cutting the Redhawks' deficit to 6-4 with 16:40 to go.

Amanda McCarthy's three-pointer gave the Gamecocks a 9-4 lead nearly six minutes into the contest. Brittany Harriel brought Southeast closer with a steal followed by a transition layup. After falling behind 11-6 after two Cantrell free throws, Allyson Bradshaw canned a three-pointer that pulled the Redhawks within 11-9.

Following a media timeout, JSU went on a 6-0 run with layups from Vaughn, McCarthy and Destany McLin to up its lead to 17-9 midway through the opening stanza.

Bradshaw's second trifecta drew Southeast to within 17-12, but another 6-0 JSU spurt put the Redhawks in a 23-12 hole with eight minutes to go in the first. The teams traded points for the next three minutes before Wright drilled a three to pull the Redhawks within eight at 27-19. Two Destiny James free throws put the Gamecocks back up by 10, but Jordan Hunter dialed long distance with a three of her own to cut the gap back to seven (29-22). JSU's Sydney Brown closed the first half scoring with a jumper that staked it to a 31-22 halftime lead.

Southeast cut the deficit to seven points three times in the first four minutes of the second half, but JSU countered with a basket of its own to maintain a nine-point advantage early in the final frame. The Gamecocks eventually took a 45-33 lead with 12:27 left.

A Bailie Roberts free throw and a Bradshaw three brought Southeast within eight, but Vaughn got behind the Southeast press for a layup that put JSU back up 10. Southeast followed with five-straight points on a Harriel layup, Bradshaw free throw and Wright jumper, clawing to within five points at 47-42 with 9:05 remaining.

The Redhawks pulled to within four points on three occasions over the next few minutes, with Bradshaw's transition layup being the third to make the score 54-50 in favor of the Gamecocks with three and a half minutes left.

Dashauna Truss' free throw upped JSU's lead to five points, but Southeast countered with hoops from Roberts and Harriel to pull within a point at 55-54 with over a minute to go. On the following Gamecock possession, McLin corralled an offensive rebound and converted a layup from in close to extend its lead to three to set up a dramatic finish.

Undeterred, the Redhawks created a look for Bradshaw, who swished in her three-pointer to tie the score for only the second time at 57 apiece with 36 seconds remaining.

Candace Morton drew a foul and made a free throw to snap the tie with 14 seconds left. Her second free throw missed, but bounced out of bounds off a Southeast player to give JSU another possession. Cantrell was fouled after the inbound pass and split another pair of free throws, giving Southeast a final possession. After a timeout, Bradshaw had her number called again and drove through traffic but got stripped going to the basket. The Gamecocks made another free throw and grabbed an offensive rebound on the miss to close out the game.

Neither team shot particularly well from the field for the game. JSU converted 36.1 percent of its shots while Southeast shot 34.5 percent from the floor. The Redhawks went 6-of-24 (25 percent) from beyond the arc and the Gamecocks countered by making 2-of-7 (28.6 percent) three-pointers. The Redhawks made 13-of-16 (81.3 percent) free throws against the Gamecocks' 14-of-23 (60.9 percent) figure from the stripe. JSU held a 44-39 advantage on the glass and forced 15 Southeast turnovers against only 12 of its own.

Bradshaw tied a game high with 15 points off the bench to lead Southeast. Harriel nearly posted a double-double off the pine, finishing with 14 points (12 in the second half) and nine rebounds. Wright (13 points) also scored in double figures while Patricia Mack grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds.

JSU's Cantrell and McLin each scored 15 points while Vaugh posted a 10-point, 11-rebound double-double.

The Redhawks return to the Show Me Center for senior night against Tennessee Tech on Monday night (6:30 p.m.). That game is also Southeast's Pink Up Cape game, proceeds from ticket sales go towards Southeast's Dig for Life initiative.