Box Score HUNTSVILLE, Texas – Down nine with 13 minutes to play, the Sam Houston put together a 21-5 run sealed by back-to-back 3-pointers from Amanda Barnes to surge the Bearkats past the Northwestern State women's basketball team 57-53 Thursday night at the Johnson Coliseum in Southland Conference action.
 
SHSU (11-12, 6-6 Southland Conference) had been 0-12 from behind the arc in the game and they finished 2-of-15 from long range.  Northwestern State falls to 13-11 overall and 6-6 in league play.
 
Kourtney Pennywell hit a free throw with 13:04 to play in the game to make it a 37-29 lead.  Jazmin Wiley sunk back-to-back layups with a plus-one to cut the Lady Demon lead to two points.  Wiley finished with 17 points for Sam Houston, two points behind the game leader Angela Beadle who had 19.
 
Koutney Pennywell scored 13 point, which tied for the team-lead with Trudy Armstead.  Janelle Perez finished with 11 points.
 
Armstead scored on a free throw with 11 minutes to play before Wiley scored on another layup to cut the lead to 38-37. After layups from Armstead and SHSU's Nyha Carter, the Bearkats took their first lead since the 14-minute mark in the first half.
 
Northwestern State shot 38 percent for the game and only 31 percent in the second half alone. The Lady Demons defense held Sam Houston to 28 percent shooting in the first half, but the Bearkats erupted for 47 percent in the second half.
 
"I thought they got a number of good looks," said Stoher. "We kept giving up Beadle to the baseline that we have talked about for three days now.  She's very good around the basket when she gets in her comfort zone."
 
Beadle finished the game with her 13^th double-double of the season (11 rebounds). She also had two assists and two blocks.
 
Sam Houston outrebounded the Lady Demons 36-34, but was able to turn 11 offensive rebounds into 15 second-chance points.  The Bearkats also forced NSU into 14 turnovers that turned into 15 points.
 
"I think the biggest thing is that we turned it over nine times in the first half. I thought we fouled too much in the first half," said Stoehr.  "If you take half of those possessions that we turned over in the first half, we have 10 more points.
 
"We gave up some really key offensive rebounds to them in the second half," she said. "It killed us and gave them tremendous momentum."  
 
Pennywell, Rogers, and Pennywell all tied for the team-lead with six rebounds for NSU.  Keisha Lee had five assists and no turnovers and Janelle Perez had four assists.
 
Northwestern State continues its road trip with Lamar on Saturday at 4 o'clock.