CLARKSVILLE – Austin Peay State University women's basketball shot the cover off the ball from three-point range and controlled the glass against Tennessee Tech, but the Governors still found themselves trailing Tennessee Tech by eight points just under halfway through the third period; the Govs closed the third quarter on a 17-4 run and built a five-point advantage heading into the fourth quarter, where they were unable to hold off a late rally by the Golden Eagles and fell, 66-61, Thursday in the Dunn Center.

Maggie Knowles got things started with a bang, drilling a three-pointer on Austin Peay's (7-5, 5-3) first possession in the Dunn Center in 19 days. With 6:01 left in the first quarter, Jordan Brock knocked down a three-pointer and gave Tennessee Tech (6-4, 4-3) its first lead of the contest, 5-4; but Nina De Leon Negron had the answer for the Govs and drilled a triple to put the home squad back up by two.

After trading baskets for most of the first quarter, a Brandi Ferby three-pointer and Knowles layup marked the final two field goals of the first quarter and allowed the Govs to build an 18-15 lead after ten minutes of action.

Both offenses cooled off a bit in the second period, but an Ella Sawyer three-pointer helped keep the Governors hold onto a narrow lead. The Golden Eagles outscored the Govs, 13-12, in the second period, but Austin Peay still held a 30-28 lead at the break.

Tennessee Tech took control early in the third quarter, building an eight-point lead with 4:39 left to play in the frame. After the Golden Eagles stretched the lead to eight – the biggest of the day – a Sawyer layup sparked a 17-4 Austin Peay run to close out the third period.

With 3:35 left to play, Shay-Lee Kirby and Sawyer drilled three-pointers on back-to-back possessions to cut the deficit to just two points. After Brandi Ferby and Brock traded free throws to keep the Tennessee Tech advantage at two points, Knowles knocked down her third three-pointer of the contest to put the Governors back up by one with less than two minutes in the third quarter.

Brandi Ferby scored the final four points of the third quarter and Austin Peay held its biggest lead of the day, 51-46, at the end of the third quarter.

After a Brock three-pointer got the fourth-quarter scoring started, Brandi Ferby kept it rolling and drilled a three-pointer to put the Govs back up by five. The Golden Eagles would cut the lead to one with 6:30 left in the game, but Kirby connected on her second triple of the game to stretch the lead back to four.

With 3:50 left in the contest, Brandi Ferby hit a layup that would mark the final points of the night for the Governors, who led 61-59 after the bucket. Tennessee Tech would close out the game on a 7-0 run and the late spark by the Golden Eagles was too much for the Govs to fend off in their return to the Dunn Center.

The Difference

Tennessee Tech shot 52.3 percent from the floor; Austin Peay shot 33.3 percent from the floor.

Notably

• Austin Peay dropped its second-straight game to Tennessee Tech, who now leads the all-time series, 64-21
• The Govs outrebound Tennessee Tech, 35-26, the +9 rebounding margin is Austin Peay's second-best single-game mark this season.
• Tennessee Tech shot 52.3 percent from the floor, that is the second best single-game mark a team has posted against the Govs this season.
• The Governors knocked down 11 three-pointers, marking the seventh time this season they have hit douvle-digit triples in a contest.
• Maggie Knowles scored a team-high 13 points, it is the fifth time this season she has led the way in scoring.
• Brandi Ferby scored 11 points, marking her first game in double figures since she scored a season-high 16 points against Chattanooga, Dec. 15.
• Tahanee Bennell scored 10 points, she has been in double figures in four of the Governors last five games.
• Ella Sawyer has only played in four games this season, but she made her first start and scored 10 points – her first double-figures performance since her season debut against Murray State, Dec. 19.
• Nina De Leon Negron led the Governors with 6 rebounds, it was the third time this season that the freshman guard has led the way on the glass.

Quotably, Coach Midlick

Opening thoughts... "I don't know the exact shooting percentage, but I know in the first half it wasn't good again. We were right at the basket and missed shots, and you know it's the third-straight game of it. I give them [Tennessee Tech] credit, they made us take some tough shots the last two minutes of the game in crunch time."

On the second half… "We were up by two going into halftime, even shooting the ball at the percentage we shot it. Then it was 42-34, we were down, and turned it around to take a five-point lead, and then Tennessee Tech chipped away at it. I thought their defense got better, and I thought we got a little complacent. Maybe we dribbled the basketball a little bit too much and they locked us down the last two minutes of the game."

Moving Forward… "We are not going to change our approach. I thought the team was ready, I thought we gave good effort on the defensive end and held them under their average. But once again things are magnified when you don't shoot the basketball well, and we did not shoot the basketball well again tonight."

Up Next

Austin Peay will continue its five-game Ohio Valley Conference home stand when they host Jacksonville State for a 1 p.m., Jan. 23 contest. After Saturday's contest against the Gamecocks, the Govs will play Murray State, Belmont, and Tennessee State in the Dunn Center, before heading back on the road Feb. 4 at Eastern Kentucky.