AUSTIN, Texas – The Rogers State women gave Heartland Conference leading St. Edward's a run for its money in a 70-64 loss Saturday afternoon inside the Recreation and Convocation Center.
 
After trailing by a game high 16 points with just over seven minutes remaining the Hillcat women went on a 7-0 run to pull the score to 55-46 in just under two minutes.
 
RSU chipped away at the Hilltoppers lead using five unanswered points from Heather Roberts and Natasha Kindred to pull the Cats deficit to 63-60 with 37 seconds remaining. The Hillcats couldn't bring the score any closer against the Hilltoppers as RSU was forced to send SEU to the line. The conference leading Hilltoppers went 7-of-8 from the line to close the contest and claim the 70-64 victory.
 
RSU shot 61 percent from the field in the final quarter including 2-of-4 from behind the arc, the lone 3-point field goals made in the game by RSU, on the way to outscoring SEU 30-24 during the period.
 
The Hillcats hung close with SEU in the first half of action trailing by just two at the end of the first quarter and the Hilltoppers took its first double-digit lead with just 3:46 remaining in the opening half. SEU led by a first half high 11 points late in the stanza but the Cats pulled the score back within seven on a 4-0 run by Lauren Schuldt to close out the half trailing 31-24.
 
RSU struggled offensively in the third quarter but trailed by just 12 points at the quarter break with 60 percent shooting from the free throw line.
 
St. Edward's (17-7, 13-2) claimed a share of the Heartland Conference regular season title with the win behind an 18 point performance from senior forward Khiani Clark. Shakera Barnes added 17 points and Lexi Fatheree tallied 12 points with 8-of-9 shooting at the charity stripe. The Hilltoppers shot 42 percent from the field and forced RSU into 16 turnovers.
 
The Hillcats were led by sophomore Lauren Schuldt with 17 points while senior Natasha Kindred added 16 points in her final game as a Hillcat inside her home state of Texas. The San Antonio, Texas native shot 7-of-12 from the field and pulled in five rebounds. Schuldt finished with the lone block for RSU in the game and moved into first place in program history with 66 career blocks. The Hillcats won the battle of the boards 40-28 and scored 18 second chance points off its 16 offensive rebounds.
 
Rogers State (8-18, 3-12) closes out the regular season on Saturday, February 25 in Fort Smith, Ark. facing UA Fort Smith inside the Stubblefield Center. Tip is set for 1 p.m. versus the Lions and the game will be carried on RSU Radio 91.3 FM and streaming on the Hillcat Network with audio at www.rsuhillcats.com/live.