A win over Texas Lutheran would have given Howard Payne hosting duties for the upcoming American Southwest Conference Championship Tournament. Instead, the Yellow Jackets slipped to second in the division with the loss and a Hardin-Simmons win over Mary Hardin-Baylor.
Howard Payne (21-4, 18-4 ASC) will enter the conference tournament as the No. 2 seed from the ASC West Division.
Texas Lutheran (9-16, 9-13 ASC) concluded its season with the home victory.
In the second half, Texas Lutheran never trailed but never led by more than six. In the final minute of play, Kendra McGuire made two free throws to give TLU a 64-62 lead with 51 seconds to play.
HPU’s Rachel Offineer was fouled on the next possession and made 1-of-2 free throws.
A missed jumper by TLU’s Mari Matott gave Howard Payne one last chance with 21 seconds on the clock. After a timeout with seven seconds to play, Howard Payne’s Meia Daniels drove into the lane and tossed a running jump shot. The shot bounced high off the rim and fell into the arms of TLU’s Courtney Ard as time expired.
The Bulldogs trailed by 10 early in the first half and never led over the first 20 minutes, but Tyson Mathews hit a jumper in the final minute to draw TLU even with Howard Payne at the half, 35-35.
McGuire, playing in her final game as a Bulldog, led TLU with 21 points. She added four assists and four rebounds. TLU senior post Courtney Ard scored 15 points and moved into fifth place on the all-time TLU scoring list. She also grabbed 11 rebounds.
Offineer led Howard Payne with 25 points and 11 rebounds. Kami Collins added 12 points and nine rebounds. The Yellow Jackets shot 36.5 percent for the game and 9.1 percent for the three-point line. Howard Payne was 0-for-7 from the three-point line in the second half.
Saturday’s game was the final game for TLU seniors Ard, McGuire, Matott, Katie Anderson, Kim Farringer and Larissa Cover.
Newspaper Box Score Howard Payne Women vs Texas Lutheran 2-19-05 1 p.m. at Seguin, Texas (Memorial Gymnasium) At Seguin, Texas (Memorial Gymnasium) TEXAS LUTHERAN 64, HOWARD PAYNE WOMEN 63 HOWARD PAYNE WOMEN (21-4 (18-4 ASC)) Rachel Offineer 10-14 5-6 25; Kami Collins 5-16 2-5 12; Angie Evans 2-9 5-6 9; Meia Daniels 2-9 4-6 8; Stacey Blalock 2-3 0-0 4; Molly Buker 1-2 0-0 3; Jennifer Alexander 1-5 0-0 2; Heather Hohertz 0-3 0-0 0; Joslyn Robinson 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 23-63 16-23 63. TEXAS LUTHERAN (9-16 (9-13 ASC)) Kendra McGuire 6-12 6-7 21; Courtney Ard 6-11 3-4 15; Tyson Mathews 3-4 2-2 9; Katie Anderson 3-11 0-0 8; Sara Kainer 3-6 1-4 7; Kim Farringer 1-6 0-1 2; Mari Matott 1-6 0-0 2; Amber Bone 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 23-60 12-18 64. Howard Payne Women............ 35 28 - 63 Texas Lutheran................ 35 29 - 64 3-point goals-Howard Payne Women 1-11 (Molly Buker 1-2; Angie Evans 0-2; Meia Daniels 0-2; Jennifer Alexander 0-3; Heather Hohertz 0-2), Texas Lutheran 6-18 (Kendra McGuire 3-7; Katie Anderson 2-5; Tyson Mathews 1-1; Kim Farringer 0-3; Mari Matott 0-2). Fouled out—Howard Payne Women-None, Texas Lutheran-None. Rebounds-Howard Payne Women 46 (Rachel Offineer 11), Texas Lutheran 37 (Courtney Ard 11). Assists-Howard Payne Women 15 (Meia Daniels 4), Texas Lutheran 14 (Mari Matott 5). Total fouls-Howard Payne Women 16, Texas Lutheran 19. A-425