CONWAY, Ark. - The Birmingham-Southern women's basketball team bounced back in a huge way on Friday night with an SAA win over Hendrix on the road. Coach Nyla Johnson tallied her first conference win for the Panthers after the team held on to their lead late in the fourth. 

BSC guard Sheraton Foster scored the team's first five points of the game including a three-pointer. The teams were tied at five with 7:24 remaining in the period until Lauryn Towns put the Panthers up 7-5 halfway through the first. 'Southern led by as many as seven in the quarter but took a two-point lead into the second after a 5-0 run by the Warriors in the final minute.

Both sides struggled offensively at the start of the second quarter with neither scoring inside the first three minutes. Sheraton Foster then knocked down a trademark jumper for her ninth point of the game and the first points of the quarter. After a couple of Hendrix buckets, Bryanna Williams and Sheraton Foster hit back-to-back threes to give the Panthers their largest lead of the night, 28-20 with 4:13 to go in the half. 'Southern was not able to extend the lead but stayed in control with an eight-point advantage largely due to Lauryn Towns' 10 first half points. The Panthers went into the break up eight.

BSC got off to an excellent start in the third quarter with a 5-0 run. Defensively, the Panthers did not allow a score until a Hendrix three after 3:33 of play. The lead slowly started to increase, and 'Southern grabbed their largest lead of the night at 14 points with 3:18 to go in the third. BSC couldn't extend the lead any further but defensively was continuing to put on a show. The Warriors were forced to shoot 4-15 from the floor in the period as the Panthers went into the fourth with a 55-42 lead. 

After recent struggles late in games, 'Southern looked to solidify their first conference win of the season after an impressive first three quarters. With 5:54 remaining, Maya Cable drained a turn around jumper for her 12th point of the night to keep the double-digit lead. The Warriors then started to heat up and went on a 13-4 run to cut the lead to one with 2:41 to go. After a BSC timeout, both teams traded buckets to make the score 64-63 with 2:11 to go. Needing a score, Sheraton Foster stepped up for her team with a clutch three-pointer to take a four-point lead. Both teams would then miss scoring opportunities before Hendrix hit a long three to get back within a point with 43 seconds remaining. Maya Cable then was as cool as ice at the free throw line and went 4/4 to close out the game. 'Southern held on to win 72-69 to earn their first SAA win of the season.

BSC Leaders
Sheraton Foster led the Panthers with 23 points on 9-13 shooting. She also had five assists and four rebounds. Maya Cable was very efficient with 18 points on 6-8 shooting in addition to her five rebounds and two assists. Lauryn Towns finished with 15 points, three rebounds, and two assists. 

Records
Birmingham-Southern (4-12) (1-4 SAA), Hendrix (2-13) (0-4 SAA)

Up Next
The Panthers will continue their road trip and play Rhodes on Sunday, Jan. 14 at 1:00 p.m. in Memphis.