ADA – The East Central University women's basketball team moved to 5-1 overall and 3-0 in the Great American Conference with a 67-62 win over Southwestern Oklahoma State in the Kerr Activities Center.

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The Tigers were led by senior Ashleigh Kelman-Poto, who tallied a career-high 20 points and added a season-best six rebounds.  Senior Taylor Fischer added 16 points and three boards, while sophomore Jalyn Jackson led the team with nine rebounds.

The Bulldogs (1-4, 0-2 GAC) opened the game strong, going on a 9-0 run in the first four minutes before allowing ECU to get on the scoreboard.  The Tigers countered with a 7-0 run over the next two minutes and kept the game close.  With 11:35 left to play in the half, ECU started a 7-0 run that spanned three minutes to gain its first advantage, 18-15.

The teams then traded points for ties at 18 and 20 over the next three minutes.  Then the Tigers came on strong again and used a 13-3 run in the final 5:30 to take a 33-23 lead into the locker room.

SWOSU started the second half the same way they had the first, going on a 9-2 run over the first three minutes to cut the deficit to three (35-32).  The Bulldogs kept the game close, but always trailed through most of the stanza.  With 6:15 left to play, SWOSU cut the lead to two (52-54) and picked up the tempo to eventually tie the game at 62, with 1:10 remaining. 

However, senior Janee Garza hit a layup and the free throw ,with 22.1 left on the clock, to give the Tigers the needed cushion.  The Bulldogs then missed a three on their next possession and two free throws by Fischer sealed the game with a 67-62 score.

Both teams struggled to make shots for the game, with SWOSU holding a slight .389 (21-of-55) to .379 (26-of-66) lead in overall shooting percentage.

The Tigers will now hit the road for the final GAC game in the 2014 portion of the season, as they travel to face Northwestern Oklahoma State Saturday, Dec.6 at 1 p.m. in Alva, Okla.