GAC Communicaitons
Eric Moyer
FORT SMITH, Arkansas – Southeastern Oklahoma State’s Kenzli Warden grabbed a career-high 16 rebounds and her 23 points finished one shy of another personal best as she led the Savage Storm to a 69-59 win against Southwestern Oklahoma State in Friday’s opening Great American Conference Women’s Basketball Championship quarterfinal contest from Southside Arena.
Sports presented by Indian Nation Wholesale.
Following a decisive third quarter in which the Savage Storm (19-10) extended their one-point halftime lead to 10, Warden scored 12 of her 23 points in the fourth quarter – including 10-straight Savage Storm points over a 5:06 span. Of the 16 rebounds, she came up with 12 in the second half.
As a team, the Savage Storm shot 50.0 from the floor and they won the rebounding battle, 39-32 to snap a three-game losing streak. Holli Lindley scored 15 points, made 3-of-6 3-pointers, and pulled down six defensive rebounds. Unanimous First-Team All-GAC honoree Caitlin Kobiske went 6-for-8 from the floor and chipped in 13 points.
The Savage Storm limited the Lady Bulldogs (16-13) to just a 32.3 field-goal percentage. In the aforementioned third quarter, SWOSU made just 4-of-16 attempts from the floor.
For only the fourth time in 14 years, the Lady Bulldogs did not advance to the semifinal round of the GAC Championships. Mason Jones led the team with 17 points, including four 3-pointers. Layni Zinn scored 12 and Libbi Zinn added 11.
The win marked the Savage Storm’s first at the GAC Championships since a semifinal win against Arkansas Tech in 2021. At noon on Saturday, the Savage Storm will face top-seeded Southern Nazarene. The Crimson Storm won both of the regular-season meetings and have claimed the last seven in the series.
