MAGNOLIA, ARK. – The Lions (3-2) and Lady Muleriders (3-3) played a hotly contested, low-scoring game in Arkansas that came down to the wire, but the Lions prevailed on late free-throw shooting to win 54-52.
 
Senior guard Ashlee Johnson led the way for A&M-Commerce, scoring a season-high ten points to go with her four boards, four assists and three steals in 35 minutes of action. Johnson's three of five shooting from the field was not only efficient, but also timely. Her first three came as a buzzer-beater to bring the Lions within three heading into half.
 
The Lady Muleriders gave the Lions fits with a full-court press that lasted the entire game. After catching A&M-Commerce, early, the Lions adjusted by way of relying on its veterans, as well as a few well-timed timeouts from head coach Jason Burton.
 
"We struggled with their press the entire game, and our 31 turnovers speaks to that," said Burton,  "We tried to prepare for that in practice, but evidently we didn't succeed. We're going to have to do a better job at taking care of the ball going forward."
 Senior forward La'Tisha Hearne only provided four minutes of action in the first half, but showed up in the second half to give the Lions a stabilizing presence against the Lady Muleriders' press. In addition to her five points and four boards, Hearne disrupted the SAU offense by drawing multiple charges on the day.
 
"When you have multiple girls taking charges, and Ashlee (Johnson) and Princess (Davis) playing well on the ball, good things happen," said Burton.
 
Even though the Lions were outrebounded 37-30, senior forward Abigail Leaupepe-Tele provided quality work on the glass with nine boards, more than doubling any other A&M-Commerce player on the day. Artaejah Gay also had another solid night off the bench, pairing her four points and four boards with two blocks and a steal.
 
Southern Arkansas enjoyed double-digit scoring from three different players. Rosa Bryant led the way with 19 points, while Allie Wade had ten points and eight boards. Shunta Nevitt had 13 points and two steals, but was forced to exit early following a serious-looking lower body injury.

With the win, the Lions move to 10-11 all time against the Lady Muleriders. SAU's 52 points scored marks the lowest points allowed in a game for the Lions since January of 2013, when they limited Incarnate Word to 51 points.
 
"We put in a concentrated effort on defense this week, and it paid off. We were able to limit their penetration tonight," said Burton.
 
With dead week upon the campus of A&M-Commerce, the Lions will have the next week off to focus on academics. Their next game is a full week away, when the Rogers State Hillcats (1-4) come to the Field House on Saturday, December 6 at 2 p.m.