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LAKE CHARLES, La. – Heidi Sihvola's three-pointer tied the game at 59-all with 1:49 to go in regulation, but McNeese State went 5-for-6 at the free-throw line in the final minute during a 7-3 run to defeat the HBU women's basketball team, 66-62, before 1,161 fans at Burton Coliseum Saturday afternoon.

Shanice Steenholdt led HBU (6-11 overall, 2-4 SLC) with 23 points and 16 rebounds. Rachel Arthur tied her career high of 21 points, as she went 7-of-13 from the floor, 2-for-4 from beyond the arc, and 5-for-6 from the free-throw line. Anna Strickland came off the bench to pull down a career-high 11 rebounds.

McNeese State, (11-6 overall, 4-2 SLC) who improved to 8-1 at home this season, was led by Allison Baggett with 23 points. Cecilia Okoye scored 18 points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.

The game was closely played, with seven ties in the first eight minutes of the contest. Tied at 14, McNeese State went on a 10-2 run to take an eight-point lead, 24-16, with 10:19 remaining in the first half, following a three-pointer by Baggett.

HBU cut the deficit to two, 26-24, following a trey by Arthur at the 7:57-mark, but that was all the closer the Huskies came the rest of the half. The Cowgirls led HBU by six at intermission, 38-32.

Steenholdt and Arthur had big first halves for the Huskies, as they had 14 and 12 points, respectively. Baggett scored nearly half of the Cowgirls' points, as she had 16.

McNeese State continued to have a comfortable lead early in the second half until Maisie Elston hit a three-pointer to cut the deficit to three, 43-40, with 16:15 to go in regulation. That basket sparked a 9-5 rally, culminated by a jumper by Strickland that gave HBU its first lead since 14-12, 49-48, with 10:52 to go.

The teams battled for a couple of ties before the Cowgirls took a three-point lead with 2:10 to go in regulation. Down 59-56, Sihvola's trey at the top of the key tied the game at 59-all with 1:43 remaining. But the Cowgirls would take a five-point lead with just 27 seconds remaining, following a jumper by Okoye and three made free throws. An Arthur three-pointer gave the Huskies some life, as they were down by just two with 15 seconds, but Jalyn Johnson made both free throws to give McNeese State the four-point win.

HBU returns home to play New Orleans on Thursday, Jan. 23 at 5 pm, followed by a 3 pm tip on Saturday, Jan. 25 against Southeastern Louisiana.