Box Score WICHITA FALLS, Texas (Nov. 10, 2017) – A wild finish that included four lead changes in the final 35 seconds – and three in the final five seconds – ended in heartbreak for Oklahoma Christian in the women's basketball season opener on Friday afternoon.
Cameron's Parfitt McNair made two free throws with :01 left to lift the Aggies past OC 96-95 in the first game of Midwestern State's Ashbrook Classic at D.L. Ligon Coliseum.
The disappointing finish overshadowed a terrific late rally by OC (0-1), which entered the fourth quarter trailing by 14 points. The Lady Eagles took the lead at 93-92 when center
Carolyne Lawley hit two free throws with 35 seconds left.
The teams traded empty possessions before Lejha Smith's put-back basket gave Cameron (1-0) a 94-93 lead with :05 left. OC called timeout, advanced the ball to midcourt and scored quickly off the inbounds play on a layup by Lawley off a pass from
Audrey Hayes.
But officials called Lawley for a foul with one second on the clock and McNair took advantage, giving the Aggies the win.
OC lost despite shooting a sizzling 51.5 percent (34 of 66) from the field. Four OC starters scored in double figures, led by sophomore guard
Megan Shelton with 21 points on 7-of-9 shooting.
Addy Clift (17 points), Hayes (14) and Lawley (14) also each reached double figures, as did freshman
Delyssa Miller, who came off the bench to score 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting.
Junior
Hannah Bentsen played her best game as a Lady Eagle, hitting all three of her shots, including two 3-pointers, and finishing with eight points, six assists and five rebounds.
The Aggies countered by controlling the boards, outrebounding OC 55-41. Smith had 12 points, 19 rebounds and six blocked shots for Cameron, while Ava Battese had 20 points, Jamie Bonnarens had 17 points, Amaka Nwakamma had 16 points and nine assists and Andrea Martinez had 14 points. Cameron shot just 37.9 percent from the field but had 21 more shot attempts than did OC.
OC led by as many as five points in the first half, which ended in a 51-51 tie. The Aggies scored the first seven points of the third quarter to take control and went up 78-64 on a layup by Jazmine Luster in the final seconds of the quarter.
Cameron still led 86-73 with six minutes left after a layup by McNair, by Lawley's late free throws capped a 20-6 run that gave the Lady Eagles a chance at the end.
OC and Cameron will play again in six days in Lawton. Before then, the Lady Eagles have two other games, starting with a meeting Saturday against the classic's host team, Midwestern State. The Lady Eagles' home opener will be Tuesday against Central Oklahoma.
