On a day when Arkansas Tech University’s Cheyenne North established a new season high in scoring, it was one of her defensive plays that made the difference in the end.
North’s blocked shot with 41 seconds left and the subsequent defensive rebound by teammate Danielle Frachiseur helped the Golden Suns hold off Southern Nazarene University 89-86 in Great American Conference women’s basketball at the Sawyer Center in Bethany, Okla., on Saturday afternoon.
The third and final blocked shot of the afternoon by North allowed Arkansas Tech to maintain an 86-84 lead, and the Suns made 3-of-4 free throws over the final 11.6 seconds to seal the win.
“I think (North) is one of the best shot blockers in the country,” said Tech head coach Dave Wilbers. “She has great timing. We made some really good plays down the stretch. These Saturday games on the road in the GAC are tough after you’ve played on Thursday night. I think any coach in the league will tell you they just want to survive on Saturday.”
The Golden Suns (6-1 overall, 3-1 GAC), winners of five consecutive games, took the lead for good at 86-84 on an Anissa Pounds 3-pointer with 1:01 left in the fourth quarter.
“She never flinched,” said Wilbers. “I could see in her eyes that she wanted the basketball, and boy did we need it.”
Arkansas Tech led by as many as 14 points late in the third quarter. Behind a career-high 34 points from Abby Boyd, the Crimson Storm (2-4, 0-4) rallied to take its first lead of the day at 76-75 with 4:08 left in the game.
A pair of 3-pointers by North in the final three minutes helped the Golden Suns stop Southern Nazarene’s momentum, and Pounds’ 216th career 3-pointer at the 1:01 mark tipped the balance to Arkansas Tech.
North finished with 34 points. She was 14-of-24 from the field and 4-of-5 at the free throw line. Kelsey McClure added 12 points and Pounds notched 10 points.
The Golden Suns will host Drury University for a 5:30 p.m. non-conference game at Tucker Coliseum in Russellville on Wednesday, Dec. 7. Radio station KCJC 102.3 FM and www.arkansastechsports.com will have live coverage.
