ST. CHARLES, Mo. – Lindenwood women's basketball (14-7, 10-2 OVC) picked up a crucial 57-55 conference victory Saturday afternoon over the Eastern Illinois Panthers (13-8, 10-2 OVC) in the 2025 Pink Out Game at Hyland Arena. Three Lions reached double-figures as Lindenwood extends their win streak to five games.  

After today's victory, the Lions are now in a three-way tie for first place in the Ohio Valley Conference with Tennessee Tech and EIU. LU defeated TTU earlier this season and split the season series with Eastern. The Lions also locked up their spot in the OVC Tournament later this season in Evansville, Ind.

Justis Odom was the leading scorer for the Lions on Saturday as she went 6-13 from the field and 3-4 from the free throw line, helping the Lions to 32 points in the paint against the Panthers. Odom also added three assists, three steals, and a pair of rebounds in her 27 minutes on the floor.  

Mya Skoff had 11 points on Saturday, her second straight game with double figures. Skoff went 3-8 from the floor, 1-3 from behind the arc, and was a perfect 4-4 on free throws. She also picked up four assists and four steals against EIU.  

Gracey Wernli posted a 50% field goal percentage for 10 points of her own, her seventh straight game with 10+ points. She also tallied a pair of boards Saturday. Brooke Coffey picked up six points and 10 rebounds against the Panthers and played all but three minutes on Saturday. 

As a team, Lindenwood shot 38.2% from the field, going 21-55 with the majority of their points coming in the paint. The Lions defense held the Panthers to a 33.9% field goal percentage and 31.3% shooting percentage from behind the arc. Lindenwood forced eight turnovers and outscored EIU 32-24 in points in the paint.  

The Lions got the scoring started on Saturday with a 5-0 run from 8:49-7:27 highlighted by a Wernli three-pointer. The OVC's leading rebounder, Macy McGlone, had five early boards, helping the Panthers respond with a 14-0 run at 5:25 and taking a 17-9 lead with 2:23 left in the first. The Lions finally broke the streak with 42 seconds remaining when Coffey scored her fourth point of the frame off a dish from Odom. The Lions found themselves trailing 22-11 when the quarter ended.  

Trailing by 11 heading into the second quarter, Lindenwood quickly trimmed the deficit to seven with a 6-0 run at 8:31. With thirty seconds left in the quarter, Lindenwood found themselves down just two thanks to seven second quarter points from Wernli, the Lions leading scorer at the break with 10. The Lions shot 36% from the floor and 22.2% from deep in the first half but found themselves trailing 30-26 heading into the locker room.  

Odom picked up four quick points to start the third quarter, but buckets from McGlone (the OVC's second leading scorer) made it difficult for the Lions to cut into the Panther lead. McGlone ran into foul trouble midway through the quarter, allowing Odom to rack up four more points and bring the Lions back within three at the media timeout. With 23 seconds remaining in the frame, Lindenwood took their first lead since the first quarter thanks to seven straight points by Skoff. Lindenwood outscored EIU 15-10 in the third quarter and took a 41-40 lead into the fourth.  

Two buckets by McGlone allowed EIU to regain the lead at 8:30, but an Odom layup at the five-minute mark gave her 15 points and the Lions the lead once again. Odom's basket helped Lindenwood to an 8-0 run and extended their lead to 51-46 with 2:54 to play, their largest lead of the afternoon. Makayla Cunningham had six points in the final four minutes against EIU, including a jump shot at 1:27 to put the Lions up 55-50. The Panthers pulled within three with thirty-seconds left, but two free throws by Ellie Brueggemann iced the game and sent the Lions home with a 57-55 OVC victory.  

Lindenwood will now hit the road as they square off against OVC opponent, the seventh place UT Martin Skyhawks on Thursday, February 6th. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center in Martin, Tenn.