The Lindenwood women's basketball team (6-17, 4-9 OVC) came up just short in a 69-67 loss to SIUE (5-21, 2-11 OVC) on Thursday night in Edwardsville, Ill.

GAME OVERVIEW
It was a slow shooting start for both teams but four early points for Justis Odom had Lindenwood out to a 6-3 lead at the 6:00 minute mark of the first quarter. The Lions maintained a slim lead throughout the frame, as a three-pointer from Ellie Brueggemann pushed the visitors advantage to 14-7 with just under two minutes to go in the frame. Lindenwood would lead 14-11 after one.

The Lions started the second quarter on a 7-0 run to take a 10-point lead at 21-11. SIUE would settle in, however and close the quarter on a 17-10 run, cutting the Lions lead to 31-28 at half. In the first stanza, Lindenwood held the Cougars to 35 percent shooting while forcing 10 turnovers on the defensive end. Makayla Wallace led the squad with eight points at the break.

The third quarter saw five lead changes occur before the media timeout as the teams went back and forth. The Cougars pulled ahead, 44-39 with 4:44 remaining in the period. SIUE remained in the lead throughout the third quarter and took a 54-47 lead to the fourth.

Lindenwood trailed by 10 with just under nine minutes to go in the final stanza but began to claw back with a couple buckets from Odom and Mya Skoff which made the score 62-56 with 7:34 to go. SIUE settled back down and went up by nine, but back-to-back threes from Ellie Brueggemann cut the deficit to 67-64 with 3:06 remaining. The score remained there until the 18 second mark as Wallace fought for a rebound inside and kicked the ball out to Brueggemann who drilled the game-tying three. On the ensuing trip, SIUE hit a scooping layup with four seconds to go to take a 69-67 lead. After a Lindenwood timeout, Odom had a good look at the rim, but her shot fell off and the Cougars hung on for a two-point win.

GAME LEADERS
Ellie Brueggemann (17 points, two rebounds, two steals)
Makayla Wallace (10 points, six rebounds, five assists)
Mya Skoff (10 points, six rebounds)

QUOTABLE
"Proud of our effort, exclaimed head coach Amy Eagan! "In all the close games we have lost it has been free throws and open layups. Need to bounce back for Saturday."

UP NEXT
Lindenwood heads to Charleston, Ill. for a matchup with Eastern Illinois on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 1:00 p.m.