South Dakota State added to its Summit League Championship collection after defeating Oral Roberts on Sunday, 84-68.
Three buckets from Haleigh Timmer sent the heavily blue crowd into a roar to open the game. At the first media break, SDSU held a 14-4 lead. ORU went 2-13 before the media timeout. The Jackrabbits led 19-10 after the first quarter behind ten points from Timmer. Taleyah Jones and Ruthie Uduoumoh combined for 10 first-quarter points for the Golden Eagles.
Jones and Udoumoh helped close the gap to just four points early in the second quarter, down 17-21. ORU took its first lead 23-21 near the halfway mark of the second quarter. Madison Mathiowetz quickly answered with a triple for SDSU. The Jackrabbits went into the halftime break with a 10 point lead, 46-36.
Out of the half, SDSU added to its lead, but ORU got back within single digits after an Emily Robinson triple and an and-one opportunity from Jalei Oglesby. The Jackrabbits held another 10 point lead going into the final frame.
The fourth quarter continued SDSU momentum, but ORU would not go away quietly, continuing to cut the lead down to 10 before SDSU built it up again. The Jackrabbits ultimately took the contest 84-68.
The Golden Eagles were led by Jones and Robinson with 17 points apiece. Udoumoh added 11 points and eight boards. Oglesby also tallied 11 points with seven rebounds.
ORU finishes the season 24-8 overall and 12-5 in the conference.
Coach Kelsi Musick was feeling blessed with the opportunity to play on Championship Sunday.
“We haven’t been here in over a decade. They’re setting a standard, setting our culture up for future success.
Graduate Student Makyra Tramble reflected on her decision to transfer to ORU.
“At Oklahoma State, I didn’t really have a good experience, so I knew what I was coming back to. I wanted to end on a good note with the people that love me and the people that I love.”
Coach Musick was also positive about the future of the program.
“We need to reload. I don’t want to rebuild. We’ve got this thing built. With who we return, the fact that they’ve got a taste of it, that makes your offseason and your preseason even better. The nucleus we have coming back, we’re gonna reload.”
SDSU was led by Paige Meyer with 26 points. Timmer tallied 21 while Mathiowetz added 20. Brooklyn Meyer notched 10 points and 15 boards for a double-double, and Mesa Byom grabbed 13 rebounds.
“I think experience is really important. You’ve got 8000 people out there, it’s a big moment. Everybody understands what they’re playing for. I thought experience really helped us there early. We really leaned on a lot of players who have been with us a long time and have been in this situation before.”
The Jackrabbits will await their fate to be found out during the NCAA Women’s Basketball Selection Show, which will air on ESPN at 7 p.m. Sunday, March 16. Current projections have SDSU as a 9-seed in the Los Angeles quarter of the Spokane region, where the University of Southern California would play host.
The All-Tournament Team consisted of Paige Meyer, who also won Most Outstanding Player, Brooklyn Meyer, and Haleigh Timmer of SDSU, Taleyah Jones of ORU, and Kiera Pemberton of UND.