Lady Raiders Win 78-69

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - The Middle Tennessee Lady Raiders staved off a late run and made 22-of-29 free throw attempts in the second half to take a 78-69 victory over Austin Peay Tuesday night at the Dunn Center.

The Lady Raiders also overcame 39 points from APSU's Brooke Armistead, 25 of which came in the second half.

Middle Tennessee opened up a 16-point lead with five minutes to play in the game, but the homestanding Lady Govs began to foul and put the Lady Raiders at the line. APSU made a late run, but the Lady Raiders were able to hang on for the victory.

MT made 16-of-21 foul shots over the final 4:19 of the game, including making the final 10 of the contest to preserve the win.

Jamie Thomatis, Joanne Aluka and Keisha McClinic all had 13 points for the Lady Raiders. Jessica Ezell added 13 for the Lady Govs, while Kelly Chavez had 10 in the loss.

The Lady Raiders opened the contest with a 21-5 run, holding the Lady Govs scoreless for 7:16 of the opening half. McClinic made a pair of three-pointers in the first 20 minutes and had eight points, while Paula Penttila also had a trifecta and had five points at the intermission.

APSU's Armistead made five of her team's seven field goals in the first half for 14 points, as the Lady Raiders held a 33-22 lead at the break. APSU shot just 26 percent in the opening 20 minutes compared to Middle Tennessee's 45 percent from the field.

The Lady Raiders had a lead as much as 19 points in the first half, but the Lady Govs scored 10 of the game's final 12 points of the half to cut the lead to 11 at the break.

The Lady Raiders begin a three-game homestand Saturday with a 2 p.m. contest against Ole Miss at the Murphy Center.

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