Williams’ career night Williams’ career night propels SLU to 69-59 Southland win over HBU

HOUSTON, Texas – Southeastern Louisiana’s Caitlyn Williams posted career highs of 28 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Lady Lions to a 69-59 victory over Houston Baptist in Southland Conference women’s basketball action Saturday afternoon in Sharp Gym.

The win evened Southeastern’s Southland Conference record, as SLU (4-6, 1-1 Southland) defeated Houston Baptist (4-7, 0-2 Southland) for the fourth straight season. The road victory was the second of the season for the Lady Lions.

Williams’ career night helped Southeastern overcome 27 turnovers. Williams was joined in double figures by Jyar Francis and Celica Sterling, who added 16 and 13 points, respectively.

“Hats off to Caitlyn Williams for her performance today,” Southeastern head coach Ayla Guzzardo said. “She worked on both ends of the floor and her hard work paid off.

“Jyar is a gamer and is very productive when she’s on the floor,” Guzzardo added. “Their teammates di`d a good job setting screens and realizing that Caitlyn and Jyar had the hot hands.”

Tyler Morrison, who came off the bench for the first time this season, ran the Southeastern offense down the stretch, finishing with a game-high four assists.

“Tyler’s our safety blanket and settles us down when we need it,” Guzzardo said. “She runs our offense and does a nice job getting defensive stops with her length. Tyler does all the little things right.”

Southeastern forced Houston Baptist into 20 turnovers. Francis, Charliee Dugas and Breonca Ducksworth each had two steals apiece.

Timia Jefferson led HBU with 22 points, while Julija Vujakovic added 13 points. Vujakovic also led the Huskies with six rebounds, while Megan Valdez-Crader had a team-high three assists. Jefferson paced the Houston Baptist defensive effort with five steals.

First Quarter
Southeastern never trailed in the win over the Huskies, jumping out to a 7-0 lead to open the contest and never looking back.

Houston Baptist would pull as close as two in the opening quarter. The Lady Lions went into the second quarter with a 20-16 advantage after a Ducksworth free throw to end the period.

Second Quarter
The Southeastern defensive effort helped the Lady Lions extend their lead. Houston Baptist shot just 20 percent (2-for-10) from the field in the quarter, as SLU limited the Huskies to just eight points in the period.

Williams had 15 points and nine rebounds in the opening half, propelling the Lady Lions to a 33-24 halftime advantage.

Third Quarter
Sterling netted a jumper to open the third quarter to stretch the lead to double figures. However, HBU came roaring back with a 10-0 run to cut the lead to 35-34 with 5:48 left in the period.

A pair of free throws by Williams and a three by Sterling put SLU up by six. A three by Francis capped a 12-5 run to close the quarter for the Lady Lions, who went into the final period up, 47-39.

Fourth Quarter
A Vujakovic three pulled HBU within 51-48 with 7:32 left in the contest. Francis answered right back with a trey of her own to stretch the lead back to 54-48 with 7:16 remaining.

Houston Baptist got as close as four down the stretch, but Southeastern would never let the hosts get back within one possession. Francis and Sterling iced the game from the free throw line down the stretch.

Up Next
Southeastern will take a break for Christmas before closing nonconference play with a 2 p.m. contest on Sunday, Dec. 29 at Alabama. The game will be televised on SEC Network+.

Southeastern Louisiana 69 (4-6, 1-1 SLC)
Carrier 0-1 0-0 0, Williams 9-15 9-11 28, Dugas 1-2 0-0 2, Sterling 5-11 2-2 13, Horne 1-3 0-0 2, Morrison 0-1 2-2 2, Giaratano 0-2 1-2 1, Jubril 0-2 0-0 0, Francis 5-12 4-4 16, Ducksworth 2-5 1-2 5, Adams 0-0 0-0 0, Huderson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-54 19-23 69.
Houston Baptist 59 (4-7, 0-2 SLC)
Calver 2-6 0-0 4, Sutherland 3-7 0-0 6, Jefferson 8-15 5-7 22, Valdez-Crader 1-7 2-5 4, Vujakovic 5-10 1-2 13, Wilson 1-5 4-6 6, Nzoiwu 1-3 0-0 2, Collins 1-3 0-0 2, Jones 0-1 0-2 0, Kollmorgen 0-6 0-0 0. Totals 22-63 12-22.
End of 1st Quarter – SLU 20, HBU 16. Halftime – SLU 33, HBU 24. End of 3rd Quarter- SLU 47, HBU 39. 3-point goals – SLU 4-14 (Francis 2-5, Sterling 1-6, Williams 1-1, Dugas 0-1, Horne 0-1), HBU 3-11 (Vujakovic 2-6, Jefferson 1-3, Calver 0-1, Kollmorgen 0-1). Technical Fouls – None. Fouled Out – Horne. Rebounds – SLU 45 (Williams 16), HBU 34 (Vujakovic 6). Assists – SLU 13 (Morrison 4), HBU 9 (Valdez-Crader 3). Total Fouls – SLU 25, HBU 20. A – 87.