HAMMOND---McNeese women's basketball outscored Southeastern Louisiana 15-12 in overtime here Sunday afternoon to pick up an 86-83 Southland Conference win over Southeastern Louisiana.
 
Dede Sheppard could of made the winning free throw in regulation but instead she did it four minutes and 51 second later in overtime. Sheppard made the second of two free throws with one second left in regulation to send the game into overtime. She then made both free throws with nine tenths of a second left in the extra period sealed the win.
 
McNeese (9-7, 4-1 SLC) placed three players in double figures and was led by career high's from senior Victoria Rachal and freshman Caitlin Davis. Rachal led the Cowgirls with 25 points and Davis added 18. Rachal was 9 of 12 from the field including 3 of 5 three-pointers. She also was perfect from the charity stripe, making all five attempts.
 
Davis scored 13 second half points and missed most of the first half after and going to the early in the second quarter after taking a shot to the head. Davis ended the game making 5 of 9 attempts from the field and got eight points from the free throw line. Davis missed only one free throw attempt. Sheppard chipped in with 16 points and was 6 of 8 from the free throw line, where it counted late in the game.
 
Junior Frederica Haywood led all players with a game high 15 rebounds and nearly tied her season high of 17 she collected at Northwestern State in the SLC opener on Dec. 31 . Haywood dominated on the defensive glass where she picked up 14 of her 15 rebounds.
 
McNeese ended the game with a 47.4 field goal percent and 75.7 free throw percent. The Cowgirls made good on 28 of 37 free throws and outrebounded SE La. 43-35.
 
The Cowgirls got off to a slow start, missing their first five shots of the game while Southeastern La. (3-14, 1-5 SLC) jumped out to a 9-0 start.
 
A Haywood layup midway through the first quarter ignited a 12-0 Cowgirl run that gave McNeese a 12-11 lead. Another jumper by Haywood gave the Cowgirls a three-point lead (14-11) with 2:17 left in the quarter. The Lady Lions would outscore McNeese 4-1 the rest of the way but the Cowgirls held a slim 16-15 first quarter lead.
 
Both teams would exchange basket early in the quarter but the Lions went on a 16-4 run that started late in the first quarter and continue on four minutes in the second quarter to take a 29-20 lead with. SE La. would go into the locker room with a 37-29 lead.
 
McNeese started the third quarter on a 9-0 run to cut the SE La. lead to two (42-40) with all nine points coming from wither Rachal or Amber Donnes. SE La. would extend its lead to five points on back to back trips on offense before Davis made an old fashion three-point play to cut it back to two. Haywood made two free throws to tie the game at 47 apiece with 1:47 but SE La's Taylin Underwood made one of her 3 three-pointers to give the Lions a 55-52 third quarter lead.
 
The Cowgirls held as much as a five point lead midway through the fourth on jumpers by Rachal and Cynthia Rivas. SE La. fought back to tie the game at 68 apiece on a Bre Warren trey with 30 seconds to play then took a two point lead on two free throws by Underwood with :12 to play. A jumper by Sheppard with six seconds left knotted it at 70. Underwood was fouled on the next play and she made one of two for a 71-70 Lion lead with six seconds to play.
 
A foul by SE La.'s Chey Stewart with one second left send Sheppard to the line. Sheppard missed the first and made the second to tie the game at 71 all and sent it to overtime.