SAN ANTONIO (Feb. 10, 2022) – Even as the losses mounted, games were postponed and the frustration built this basketball season, Oklahoma Christian's players never stopped battling, and coach Stephanie Findley steadfastly maintained her confidence in the Lady Eagles.

A big reward for that persistence came on Thursday night. Behind a 28-point, 18-rebound outing from second-year freshman Brooklin Bain, OC rallied from a 13-point second-half deficit and pulled away late for a 70-61 win over St. Mary's (Texas) at Bill Greehey Arena, giving the Lady Eagles their long-awaited first W of the 2021-22 season.

OC (1-18, 1-9 Lone Star Conference) snapped a 19-game losing streak, the longest in program history, with the win over St. Mary's (2-20, 1-10), an opponent that – like OC – usually is competitive but this season has endured seemingly endless struggles.

The Lady Eagles outscored the Rattlers 19-5 in the fourth quarter, and contributions came from up and down the roster. Bain – who matched her career scoring high and set a new career high in rebounds – hit her first four 3-point attempts and had 23 points and 10 rebounds by halftime, helping keep her team afloat. Freshman guard Ashanti Day, limited to four minutes and zero points in the first half due to foul trouble, finished with 13 points to help fuel OC's comeback.

Backup post player Emma Epperly added 10 points. Junior Kendra Levings hit two big 3-pointers in the final five minutes. Freshman guard Kate Bradley dished out seven assists. Perhaps most importantly, everyone took care of the ball, as OC committed a season-low five turnovers.

"I'm really proud of the way these girls have continued to work and fight," Findley said. "This season has been one thing after another and they have never wavered. They just keep working and playing hard. There is no quit in them. They played so well as a team tonight and that is one of things that has suffered the most with a lack of practice time in January – the teamwork.

"They stuck together tonight and finished the fourth quarter strong."

When Briley Perkins hit a 3-pointer for St. Mary's with 5:18 left in the third quarter, the Rattlers led 50-37, but OC closed the gap to three points before Faith Phillips' put-back at the buzzer gave St. Mary's a 56-51 lead.

Christina Baker's jumper with 6:17 left in the game extended the Rattlers' advantage to 58-54, but those proved to be their final points for more than 5½ minutes and OC took advantage of the Rattlers' struggles. Levings' 3-pointer with 4:50 left put OC ahead 59-58 and the Lady Eagles steadily pulled away.

Kendall Blackburn's basket with 4:08 gave OC a three-point lead and another 3-pointer by Levings with 3:27 left made it 64-58. Neither team scored again until Bain split a pair of free throws with 1:02 left, and Day made a layup with 58 seconds left, extending the lead to nine points.

Sarai EstupiNan's 3-pointer with 46 seconds left ended the Rattlers' scoring drought, but Blackburn split a pair of three throws with 32 seconds left and Day made two more with 8.6 seconds left to end all doubt. When the final buzzer sounded, there were plenty of smiles and hugs along the OC sideline.

Hannah Wilson led St. Mary's with 20 points and 13 rebounds but missed a key portion of the fourth quarter due to foul trouble.

The win over the Rattlers in the St. Mary's gym was the third for OC since the Lady Eagles began competing at the NCAA Division II level, but the first since 2017.

OC will visit LSC rival St. Edward's (Texas) on Saturday before returning home for home games against Texas-Permian Basin and Angelo State (Texas) next Thursday and Saturday, respectively.