by MACOMB, Ill. – The Oral Roberts women’s basketball team set a program record scoring 20 three-point baskets in Saturday’s 92-85 win at Western Illinois to move up to third place in the current Summit League standings.
Sarah Garvie recorded a career high 23 points in the first half of play in Saturday’s game. Garvie went 7-for-10 from behind the arc in the first 20 minutes. She went 5-for-6 in the second quarter alone and connected on two technical free throws. The Golden Eagles trailed at the end of the first quarter, 26-25, after a 15-3 Leatherneck run, but took over the second quarter, 30-26, and led at halftime, 55-52. Both ORU and Western Illinois shot over 50 percent overall from the field. Lakota Beatty (Caddo/Lakota/Gros Ventre) went a cool 5-for-10 from beyond the arc for 15 first half points.
ORU went up by as much as eight points in the third until Western Illinois went on a 10-2 run in a 4:30 span. ORU did regain a one point lead at the end of the third after being out-scored 17-15. After being down by one with 8:56 to play, Maya Mayberry hit a jumper to regain the lead for ORU and the Golden Eagles never looked back. With 1:10 to play, WIU’s Annabel Graettinger hit a three to tie the game, 85-85. Jordan Gilbertdrove the ball the next possession and scored on a foul and picked up the and-one to go up by three with 39 seconds to play. Down the stretch, Katie Kirkhart and Keni Jo Lippe hit two free throws each to seal the 92-85 victory to sweep the Leathernecks during the regular season for the first time since 2014-15.
The Golden Eagles set a program record with 20 three-point makes in the game. Beatty went 7-for-14 from three and 8-for-18 overall for 23 points. Garvie shot 8-for-15 from long range for a career high 26 points. Keni Jo Lippe hit 3-for-5 and deep and Maya Mayberry went 2-for-3 to break the previous record set at 18. Overall, the Golden Eagles shot 20-for-37 from three-point range. ORU shot 48 percent overall in the game.
Western Illinois had four players score in double figures on senior night. Graettinger led the Leathernecks with 16 points. Taylor Higginbotham and Danni Nichols each had 15 and Olivia Kaufmann scored 13. WIU shot 43 percent overall in the game and 32 percent from three-point range. The Leathernecks went 21-for-23 from the free throw line and ORU went 12-for-13.
