ADA – The East Central University women's basketball team fought a hard battle with Southwestern Oklahoma State, but fell 71-74 in Great American Conference action at the Kerr Activities Center.

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The Tigers (8-12, 8-8 GAC) were led by junior Jalyn Jackson, who garnered her fifth double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 rebounds.  Sophomore Aalyiah Blakely earned her first double-double of the year, with 18 points and 14 rebounds.  Sophomore Alexa Adair led ECU with 23 points, while sophomore Mariah Meyer netted 12 points.

The opening quarter was a tight battle, resulting in five tie scores, including a 15-all mark at the end of the first 10 minutes.

The first two minutes of the second quarter remained the same, with the teams knotted at 22, with 7:42 left in the half.  That is when the Tigers went on their first big run of the game, garnering five-straight points over the next 2:30. 

However, the Bulldogs (10-6, 14-8 GAC) countered with a 13-0 run over the next three minutes to take a 27-35 advantage.  The teams then traded points in the remaining time and ECU went into the locker room trailing 31-38.

SWOSU pushed its advantage out to double digits early in the third quarter and led 42-57, with 4:20 left.  The Tigers kept fighting and in the final two minutes of the stanza, used a 6-2 run to cut the disadvantage to 55-65.

ECU kept up the pressure in the fourth quarter and ended the run at 12-4, with 6:55 left to play and a 61-67 deficit.  SWOSU scored the next four points, but the Tigers fought back with an 8-0 run to get within in two (69-71).  The Bulldogs netted the next three points and were leading 69-74, with a minute left to play.

ECU hit the next shot and then had a few chances to force overtime in the final seconds, but failed to score and fell 71-74.

The key difference in the game came at the free-throw line, where the Bulldogs garnered 20 free shots to 12 by the Tigers.

ECU will now hit the road for the next three games, starting with a battle at Oklahoma Baptist, Saturday, Feb. 13 at 1 p.m. in Shawnee, Okla.