ARKADELPHIA, ARK. – The East Central University women's basketball team dropped an 80-85 decision to Henderson State in Great American Conference action at the Duke Wells Center.

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The Tigers (1-4, 1-2 GAC) were paced by sophomore Alexa Adair, who tallied 21 points and five rebounds.  Junior Whitney Stotler added 13 points and a team-high seven boards, while junior Courtney Cowan added 17 points and three assists.

The opening quarter was a close one through the first seven minutes with no team leading by more than two points and three tie scores.  However, ECU took control in the final minutes, using a 7-2 run to own a 20-15 advantage.

In the first three minutes of the second quarter, the Reddies (3-4, 3-0 GAC) used an 8-2 run to regain the advantage (22-23).  The teams then traded shots and the game was again knotted another three times over the next four minutes.  The final three minutes of the half was again for the Tigers, as they went into the locker room with a 42-36 lead after putting together a 10-4 run.

HSU came out ready to fight in the third quarter, using a 5-0 run in the first two minutes to cut the deficit to one (42-41).  Over the next two minutes they kept up the pressure and tied the game at 45.  The score was close for the majority of the quarter, but in the final two minutes the Reddies looked like they would pull away.  They had pushed the lead to eight (52-60), but ECU countered with a 6-0 run in the final minute to cut the deficit to two (58-60).

The Tigers kept pushing and tied the game at 60 in the first 15 seconds of the fourth quarter.  The game remained close until a 6-0 run over a minute span gave HSU the final push they needed.  The Reddies kept the advantage between three and six points until the final seconds and ended up taking the 80-85 win.

Both teams had strong shooting games, with ECU finished with a 41.7 percentage overall and HSU 50 percent.  The key difference came at the free-throw line, where the Reddies went 19-of-26 to the Tigers 12-of-15.

ECU will remain in Arkadelphia, Ark., through the weekend as they face Ouachita Baptist, Saturday, Dec. 5 at 1 p.m.