LITTLE ROCK – A huge fourth-quarter run propelled the Little Rock women’s basketball team to its first-ever Postseason WNIT victory at Southern Miss on Wednesday evening.

With the game tied at 54-54 with 6:34 left, Little Rock (25-8) scored 13 of the next 16 points to defeat Southern Miss (23-11) and advance to the Second Round of the Postseason WNIT for the first time in program history.

The Trojans will face either Alabama or Mercer at a date and time this weekend still to be determined. Alabama and Mercer play in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on Thursday evening.

On her 22nd birthday, senior Kaitlyn Pratt topped the Trojans with 18 points on 7 of 11 shooting and also had a team-high eight rebounds. Freshman Anna Hurlburt got the start and scored 13 points and had two assists, and sophomore Kira Shepard had 14 points, four rebounds and five assists.

Monique Townson and Sharde’ Collins also reached double-figure scoring with 11 and 10 points, respectively. Townson had a team-high nine assists and four steals.

Wednesday’s game had 11 ties and 10 different lead changes, but the final lead change happened with just under six minutes to go. With the game tied at 54-54, the Trojans started what would become a huge momentum swing with a 4-0 run on a Shepard jumper and a Townson layup to take a 58-54 lead. Southern Miss made a jumper to get back within 2 points with 4:46 to play, but that would be the Eagles’ last field goal for more than four minutes.

The Trojans got another layup and a 3-pointer from Shepard, a Collins jumper and a wide open Ronjanae DeGray layup to take a 10-point lead at 67-57 with 1:22 to play. The rest was all fouling for the Golden Eagles, and Little Rock shot free throws to coast to the final score.

Little Rock got 36 points in the paint during the game and scored 18 points off 14 Southern Miss turnovers. Little Rock out-assisted the Eagles 20-11 and shot 53.6 percent from the field overall. In the fourth quarter, the Trojans made 9 of 13 field-goal attempts.

The Trojans and Golden Eagles played a competitive first half with the Eagles taking a 35-33 lead into the break as Brittanny Dinkins made a 3-pointer with just three seconds remaining. Dinkins had 15 points for Southern Miss in the first half on 6-10 shooting, and the Eagles got 8 second-chance points by grabbing nine offensive rebounds.

For Little Rock in the first half, Pratt scored 9 points and Anna Hurlburt scored 7 while also adding three rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Little Rock used an 8-0 run spanning the end of the first and early second quarters to take a lead but never led by more than 3 in the first half.

Southern Miss had multiple moments where it appeared they might pull away, but Little Rock never led the Eagles’ lead get larger than 5 points.

The Trojans will play in the WNIT Second Round against either Alabama or Mercer. Little Rock will find out its opponent, game time and location after the Crimson Tide and Bears play on Thursday evening.

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NEW ORLEANS – Following a two-game performance that saw her score a combined 38 points and grab nine rebounds, Little Rock senior guard Sharde’ Collins was named to the Sun Belt’s All-Tournament Team on Sunday night.

Collins scored 11 points in Little Rock’s quarterfinal victory over Appalachian State and followed that with 27 points against Louisiana in the semifinals, tying for the second-most points in a game in her career.

Against the Mountaineers, she had six total rebounds and two assists. Against the Cajuns, Collins grabbed three boards, played all 40 minutes and had two more assists.

In the Trojans’ two tournament games, Collins played all but four minutes and shot 48.6 percent (17-35) from the field. She made three 3-pointers as well on eight attempts.

This is Collins’ second consecutive year being placed on the Sun Belt All-Tournament team. As a junior, Collins helped take Little Rock to the Sun Belt Championship Game, scoring 15.0 points per game in the tournament on 46.2 percent shooting.

The Trojans will learn their national postseason fate on Monday night. If the Trojans do not make the NCAA Tournament as an at-large team, they have earned an automatic spot in the Postseason WNIT. The NCAA Selection Show is scheduled for 6 p.m. eastern on ESPN, and the WNIT bracket will be announced later Monday night.

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TULSA – The Little Rock women’s basketball team trailed by as many as 15 points in the second half, but an offensive and defensive resurgence allowed the Trojans to storm back for a 63-58 victory over Tulsa at the Donald W. Reynolds Center on Sunday afternoon.

Tulsa (4-8) shot nearly 47 percent from the field in the first half and took a 33-22 lead into the break. But Little Rock (6-5) held the Golden Hurricane to just 37 percent from the field in the second half while outscoring Tulsa 41-25 in the final 20 minutes.

Kyra Collier scored a career-high 15 points and more than doubled her career high in rebounds with 17 for her first collegiate double-double. Sharde’ Collins tied for the team lead in scoring with 15 points, and Kaitlyn Pratt added 15 points as well and nine rebounds. Ronjanae DeGray was Little Rock’s fourth double-digit scorer, putting up 10 points.

Little Rock’s 63 points were the most it has scored all season, and Sunday marked the first time this year that Little Rock had four players reach double-figure scoring.

The Trojans also dominated the Hurricane on the boards, pulling down 51 total rebounds to Tulsa’s 32. That margin included a 21-5 edge for Little Rock on the offensive glass. Little Rock last recorded more than 50 rebounds against Incarnate Word on Dec. 10, 2013.

For nearly two thirds of the game, things appeared to be destined for a Tulsa win. But Little Rock completely turned things around midway through the third quarter. Tulsa led 45-34 with 5:21 to play, but Little Rock closed the period on an 8-2 run to make the Hurricane’s lead a manageable 47-42 entering the fourth.

It took the Trojans another five minutes of chipping away at Tulsa’s lead before they finally broke through, but a Collins jumper with 4:29 remaining finally put Little Rock ahead for the first time all game. Tulsa’s red-hot shooting dried up in the period as the team went just 4 of 15 from the floor.

In the fourth quarter, Collins scored 6 points and Pratt added 7. Collier added 4 points of her own as Little Rock went 7 of 14 from the field in the fourth quarter.

Tulsa began the game on a 9-0 run before a pair of Collier free throws 4:30 into the game got the Trojans on the board. The Trojans got within one at 19-18 early in the second quarter by scoring its first 4 points, but the Hurricane followed with a 12-0 run and entered halftime leading 33-22.

Carolee Dillard scored 4 points for Little Rock, recording her first points since 2013. Monique Townson had a team-high four assists in 38 minutes. The Trojans scored 34 points in the paint.

The Trojans play one more non-conference game this season on Wednesday, squaring off against the Tigers of LSU. Little Rock and LSU are set for a 7 p.m. tip at the Maravich Center.

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