Box score

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BETHANY, Okla. (Jan. 15, 2009)  – Despite having three players score in double figures, Oklahoma Christian fell 71-55 at No. 17 Southern Nazarene (Okla.) Thursday night in Sooner Athletic Conference women's basketball action.

OC and SNU came in having split their last 10 meetings, but the Crimson Storm won their fourth straight in the series. The loss takes OC to 11-5 overall and an even 4-4 in Sooner Athletic Conference play. It's the Lady Eagles fourth loss in their last five games.

Lisa Chenoweth paced OC with a career-high 17 points. She made 3-of-5 three-point tries to go with six rebounds and two steals. Hillary Duncan (14 points) and Lindsey Gipson (11 points) also scored in double digits. Duncan pulled down a team-best seven boards.

Turnovers were a problem for OC who committed 18 on the night. The Lady Eagles forced 16 SNU turnovers and the Crimson Storm won the rebounding battle 40-30.

OC never led in the game, but it was close throughout. The Lady Eagles were within 14-12 when Kailan DeCamp hit 1-of-2 free throws with 12:37 left in the first half.

But SNU followed with a 14-4 run to take control momentarily. The Crimson Storm's lead swelled to 14 points twice in the half before OC climbed back within single digits with a 9-1 run to close the period.

The Lady Eagles kept SNU from scoring over the final three-plus minutes and it was 31-25 at halftime after DeCamp rattled home two with 53 seconds to play. Brittney Kennedy appeared to have made it even closer when she made a left-handed post shot as time expired. But the officials waved off the bucket, leaving OC down six at the break.

OC (1-9) and SNU (3-16) combined to go 4-for-25 from downtown in the first half. The teams also committed seven turnovers apiece.

The Lady Eagles' stingy defense didn't stop at the break and the Crimson Storm failed to score for nearly three minutes to start the second half. OC capitalized with five-straight points, and when Chenoweth canned a triple at 17:30, it was a 33-30 contest.

Lana Keith finally ended SNU's struggles with a triple at the 17:07 mark to ignite a 9-0 run that volleyed the game back in the Storm's favor.

Then it was OC's turn to go on a run, and the Lady Eagles rattled off a 9-2 rally to stay within striking distance. Chenoweth hit another big trey with 13:05 to play that slimmed the margin to 44-39.

But OC went almost five minutes with no points from there, and SNU used the OC dry spell to score 11 unanswered and shift the game for good.

The Storm led by as many as 20 points in the final half before a late 8-2 run by the Lady Eagles made it a 71-55 final.

Kinzie Didier led SNU with 20 points, while Ashley Mantooth chipped in 12.

OC hosts Science and Arts of Oklahoma at 6 p.m. on Saturday night in another SAC game.

-OC-