Argonauts Fall to Arkansas Tech in Overtime :: West Florida rallied from 17 points down to force overtime, but ran out of gas in the extra frame.

West Florida rallied from 17 points down to force overtime, but ran out of gas in the extra frame.

Nov. 23, 2007

RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. - The West Florida women's basketball team struggled in the first half, and trailed by as many as 17, but rallied with some outstanding second half defense, to take a 55-53 lead with 25 seconds left in the game. Arkansas Tech tied the game with four seconds remaining, and went on to outscore the Argos 12-0 in overtime. This was the second consecutive overtime game for West Florida.

In the first half, West Florida just seemed to miss every shot and Arkansas Tech roared out to a 17 point lead. West Florida only mustered 16 points in the first half and trailed 31-16 at halftime. The second half was totally different as the Argos forced turnovers and fed off the defense to get some transitions baskets. The game was definitely a tale of two halves. Unfortunately, for West Florida, the Overtime turned out like the first half, as the Argos were 0 for 6 in the overtime period.

Amy Drake came off the bench to help spark the second half rally with 10 of her 12 points coming in the second half. Drake hit eight consecutive free throws to help the Argos make an outstanding comeback. Chelsea Patterson scored on a lay up after a Tara Russ steal to tie the game at 53 with 1:30 left in the game. Arkansas Tech missed two shots on the next possession and then Amy Drake hit a driving layup to give the Argos the lead. However, Rachel Brazell hit a jumper with 4.3 second left to tie the game.

The overtime was all Arkansas Tech, as the Argonauts had exhausted themselves with the comeback. Pressure defense and some better shooting helped the Argonauts outscore Arkansas Tech 39-24 in the second half. Samantha Schlaegel, Laura Davis, and Chelsea Patterson each hit a three pointer in the early part of the second half to help the Argonauts begin the comeback. Schlaegel came off the bench to score nine points and grab a team high five rebounds. Dominique Boykins added 10 points for West Florida, while Patterson chipped in with 11 points. Brazell led Arkansas Tech with 17 points.

West Florida plays again Saturday evening against Ouachita Baptist. The game is set for 5:00 pm. The Argonauts are now 2-2 on the season, while Arkansas Tech is also 2-2 with the win.