CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo.– Carrie Shephard had 23 points and Tesia Thompson added 22 to lead Southeast Missouri (17-5, 9-2) to a 79-52 win over Jacksonville State (10-12, 6-5) Thursday night at the Show Me Center.

Behind Shephard and Thompson's strong efforts, SEMO ran its winning streak to eight games. The Redhawks are now in a three-way tie with Tennessee Tech and Belmont for second place in the OVC standings behind leader UT Martin. 
 
Shephard drained four three-pointers to add to her season total of 70, which ranks second behind her own SEMO single-season record of 73.
 
The Redhawks began to pull away from the Gamecocks in the third quarter, gaining a 17-point lead on a layup by Denisha Gardener at the 1:39 mark. 
 
In the fourth quarter, the Redhawks outscored the Gamecocks 19-7. SEMO took its largest lead of the night with three minutes remaining when Shephard drained a 3-pointer to make it 77-50 in favor of the Redhawks. 
 
The Redhawks shot 43.8 percent in the final quarter to the Gamecocks mere 13.3 percent. 
 
SEMO shot 46.3 percent (31-of-67) from the field, while JSU only shot 28.6 percent (14-of-49). The Redhawks outscored the Gamecocks 38-14 in the paint. 
 
Destiny Elliot and Taylor Hawks led the Gamecocks with 10 points each.  
 
SEMO returns to the Show Me Center Saturday to host Tennessee Tech. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m., CT.