WEATHERFORD, Okla. – Mackenzie Crusoe hit a floater in the waning seconds to help the East Central University women's basketball team fend off Southwestern Oklahoma State University 53-51 in a pivotal Great American Conference road match at Pioneer Cellular Event Center on Thursday night.
 
"Defensively, we did a great job guarding their players," Head Coach Heather Hurt said. "We held #5 to low points and contained the ball well. Kenzie had a great game on both sides of the floor. We drew up a simple play and she came up big with the game winner. We continued to fight, and I am super proud of them."
 
After trailing 15-12 at the end of the opening quarter, the Tigers seized momentum in the second, holding the Bulldogs to just five points while ECU put up 13 points to give them a 25-20 halftime lead.
 
Mackenzie Crusoe kept things going offensively for the Tigers to start the third quarter as her three-pointer sparked a 9-2 scoring run to extend their advantage to double-digits at 34-22. However, SWOSU began to rally back, responding with an 8-0 run to narrow the gap. Entering the final stanza, ECU maintained a 36-32 lead.
 
The fourth quarter was a close affair as both teams traded baskets until SWOSU finally caught up to tie the game 42-42 at the 4:26 mark. Three ties and four lead changes would unfold in the final half of the game with the Bulldogs holding a slight two-point edge at 49-47 with 38 seconds remaining. But on the ensuing possession, a dagger three-pointer from Jayden Weiberg put the Tigers back ahead with all of the momentum to finish the job.
 
Weiberg added one more point to the lead with one of two made free throws from the charity stripe. Despite the Bulldogs managing to connect on a layup on the next possession to tie the score with five seconds left on the clock, ECU was not looking to go into overtime, and out of the timeout, Crusoe came through knocking down the game-winning floater from mid-range to seal the 53-51 victory for the Tigers.
 
ECU shot 19-for-51 overall and 5-of-21 from deep while also finishing 10-of-17 from the charity stripe, eight of those coming from the fourth quarter alone.
 
Crusoe's go-ahead basket capped off a 28-point stellar performance, shooting 11-for-20 from the field and 4-of-9 from the three-point line. She also added a team-high eight rebounds and four steals on the defensive end, setting a new single-season steals record in the process with 70 total. The previous record was 68.
 
The East Central University women's basketball team will return to the Kerr Activities Center for their final home game of the season on Saturday, March 2 against Oklahoma Baptist University at 1 pm. The Tigers will recognize their three seniors – Eriel West, Kate Ogle, and Mackenzie Crusoe – after the conclusion of the contest.