RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. — Senior Roselis Silva had 16 points and senior Jessica Weatherford scored 13 to lead the Arkansas Tech Golden Suns (19-6, 16-3 GAC) to a come-from-behind, 69-67 Great American Conference win over the Harding University Lady Bisons (17-8, 13-6 GAC) Thursday night at Tucker Coliseum.
The Golden Suns shot 48 percent from the field in the second half to erase an 11-point deficit at the start of the second half.
"It wasn't a pretty game but it turned out a terrific game with a great crowd" said head coach Dave Wilbers. "We were down by eleven and our team showed their character. Our team is tough and we have been able to sustain that all year long."
The Lady Bisons opened up play with a layup from Kristen Celsor. The two teams would continue to trade buckets throughout the game. The Golden Suns would hold a lead of five (10-5) with 14:22 left to play. The Lady Bisons would take the lead in the final minutes of the half with a score of 37-32 as the two teams went into the locker rooms.
The lead changed ten times in the first half as Arkansas Tech only shot 30.8 percent from the floor.
The Lady Bisons continued to strike in the beginning of the second half, when they held the lead by 11 points with 18:16 left to play. A big three-pointer from senior Westin Taylor at the 5:18 mark tied the game and sparked some momentum in the team. The Golden Suns would take the lead at the 4:36 mark with a free-throw from Weatherford. Her free-throw sparked a 6-0 run that put the Golden Suns ahead for good.
Freshman Caitlyn Spurgeon had the game winning play when Harding's Shana Holmes went for a three-pointer with two seconds left and Spurgeon blocked it as the buzzer sounded.
With the win, Arkansas Tech clinched a share of the 2012-13 Great American Conference women’s basketball championship, the program's 23rd conference champion in the 36-year history.
The Golden Suns can win the league title outright if they defeat East Central University at Tucker Coliseum on Saturday.
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