PHOTO | Margarita Lopez
The Goldens Suns battled a 52-72 loss against Harding on Jan. 23 on homecourt. This put the Golden Suns 9-6 overall.
Kaley Shipman, junior from Mountain View, put Tech on the scoreboard quick into the game with a layup. The Bisons managed a couple of layups, but a three-pointer off the hands of Claudia Bridges, freshman from Fayetteville, gave the Golden Suns a 7-4 lead with 7:28 left in the first quarter. Harding inched their way closer to leveling the score board with a jumpshot, but Julie Wagner, sophomore from Humbolt, Tennessee, retaliated with a jumpshot, putting the score 9-6. Still, Harding tied the game up 9-9 with 6:24 left in the quarter.
Alex Hill, sophomore from Harrison, put four more points on the board to help bring Tech to a 15-11 lead with 4:44 left. The Bisons pushed back as the quarter came to a close, and Tech and Harding ended the quarter with a level 17-17 score.
Shipman once again was the first to score for Tech with 9:01 left in the quarter. Neither team would score again until 7:21 when Harding managed a layup, bringing the score to 19-21. Bridges was quick to fight back with a layup. The two teams went back and forth until Hayleigh Wyrick, freshman from Pearcy, advanced Tech’s lead 30-27 with a three-pointer, 1:16 left in the quarter. Tech managed to stay on top for the remainder of the quarter, finishing the half with a close 35-33 score.
This put Tech in a tight spot going into the second half, especially with Harding coming out strong in the third quarter. The Bisons put 12 more points on the board before Shipman managed two free throws with 6:05 left in the quarter. With the Golden Suns behind 37-45, they attempted to redeem themselves with two layups and four free throws but ended the third quarter with Harding on top 45-54.
Harding was quick to score less than a minute into the quarter. A free throw by Jalei Oglesby, sophomore from Howe, Oklahoma, gave Tech a point. Oglesby progressed the Golden Sun’s score four more points with a jump shot and layup, bringing the score to 50-60 in favor of Harding. The Golden Suns scored one more time off the hands of Jaki Rollins, freshman from Mustang, Oklahoma, but would not be able to make a comeback. The Golden Sun’s ended the game with a 52-72 loss to Harding.
