The Lady Panthers ended the regular season on a high note after two home victories against the Alcorn State University Lady Braves and the Southern University Lady Jaguars. Both wins secured the Lady Panthers a No. 2 seed in the SWAC Conference tournament.
In the first two minutes of the game against the Lady Braves, the Lady Panthers went on a 9-0 run capped off with a three point shot from senior guard Dominique Smith. The Lady Panthers would lead by as much as 19 points in the first half of the game with 1:25 left and led with a score of 29-15.
The Lady Braves had a close contest as they fought back to get back into the game as they cut the deficit down to 3 points with 12:29 left in the game. The Lady Panthers had a 7-0 run to get a double digit lead with 9:07 left. The Lady Panthers kept a comfortable lead until the Lady Braves would hit a 3-point shot to get within 1 point with 29 seconds left. Good defense and a made free throw shot sealed the deal for the Lady Panthers as they went on to win 55-53. Freshman guard Siarra Soliz led the Lady Panthers in scoring with 19 points.
The Lady Panthers’ next game was against the Lady Jaguars. The Lady Jaguars came out strong as they led by as much as seven points in the first half. But the Lady Panthers stayed in the game and took their first lead of the game with a 21-20 score with 4:38 left in the first half. They would lead at halftime with a score of 27-20. The Lady Jaguars opened the 2nd half with a 10-2 run to take the lead with 14:23 left in the game. It would be their first and last lead of the second half. The game stayed close throughout until the 5:02 minute mark when the Lady Panthers would lead by nine points. Good execution and good defense would keep them ahead and chalk up another victory in the win column with a score of 61-51 and seal a second seed in the SWAC Championship tournament. Senior guard Dominique Smith led all scorers with 18 points.
The Lady Panthers will face the Lady Tigers of Jackson State University in the opening round of the SWAC tournament on March 9, 2011 at 10 a.m. in Garland, Texas.