BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ? A lapse at the second half's start proved to be Austin Peay State University's downfall in a 64-46 loss at Samford in Ohio Valley Conference action, Saturday afternoon.

The loss was the Lady Govs second straight and they fall to 5-14 overall and 2-8 in conference play. Samford improved to 15-6 overall and 8-3 in league action.

Austin Peay trailed by just seven points, 29-22, at halftime. However, Samford opened the second period with nine straight points in the opening 1½ minutes to break the game open, 38-22, with 18:21 remaining. The Lady Govs would get back within 10 points twice before the nine-minute mark, but could not get closer. The Bulldogs held their ground and even used a 13-3 scoring run over seven minutes to build their largest lead, a 20-point advantage, 62-42, with 2:24 remaining.

The first half was a close affair with three ties and four lead changes. Austin Peay never led by more than one point at any time, the last time following senior Keri Reese's basket which gave it a 13-12 lead with 9:13 remaining. Samford used a 12-4 run over the next five minutes to build its first seven-point lead, 24-17, with 4:18 remaining. Austin Peay cut the lead to four points on an Alex Bivens' three-point field goal only to see Samford respond on Taryn Towns three-point field goal with 47 seconds left to set the halftime margin.

Reese finished with a career-high 17 points, finishing a perfect 7-of-7 from the field. Sophomore Janay Armstrong added 10 points and eight rebounds. The Lady Govs made just 16 of their 47 field-goal attempts (38.3 percent).

Chika Okoli led all scorers with 18 points and chipped in 11 rebounds. She was one of four Samford players to score more than 10 points. The Bulldogs made 24-of-50 (48.0 percent) from the field, including 8-of-20 (40 percent) from three-point range.

Austin Peay returns to action with a 5:15 p.m., Thursday, Ohio Valley Conference contest against Murray State in the Dunn Center.

 

- AP -