LAKE CHARLES – The McNeese Cowgirls showed Saturday afternoon they still have a lot of fight in them and are content on making a run for the Southland Conference Tournament despite falling 64-60 to New Orleans.
 
Twice during the game the Cowgirls rallied from double-digit deficits to pull to within a possession and even tied the game several times in the fourth quarter, including at 60-60 with 1:12 to play. But McNeese (6-19, 4-10) was not able to get a good shot off the rest of the way as UNO (11-13, 7-8) hit two free throws with six seconds to play to seal the win.
 
"Obviously we wanted to come out in the win column today," said head coach Kacie Cryer. "But we didn't. But the resiliency and fight that our girls showed today to get back into the game and to give our team a chance at the end, as a coach I couldn't be prouder."
 
McNeese trailed just 32-23 at the half despite making only 2 of 11 shots in the second quarter.
 
The Privateers came out in the second half and built an 11-point lead following a Traya Bruce three-pointer to make it 38-27 with 7:32 to play in the third quarter.
 
That lead built to 14 points several times the next few minutes before McNeese's Callie Maddox and Regan Bolton started to heat things up on offense as the two combined to score the final nine points of the quarter to help ignite an 11-0 run in the final 3:04 as the Cowgirls pulled to within 45-42 heading into the fourth.
 
"Keeping the game at nine points at the half was big," said Cryer. "Especially since we shot just 18 percent in the second quarter. "We came out in the third quarter and executed a lot better but we dug deep on the defensive end and we really did a great job of stopping them."
 
The Cowgirls held UNO to just 5 of 13 shooting in the third period while outscoring it 19-13 to get back into the game.
 
The run continued into the fourth quarter following a Damilola Balogun jumper and then a Bolton 3-pointer to extend the run to 16-0 and give the Cowgirls their first lead since the beginning of the game at 47-45 with 9:04 to play.
 
Unfortunately UNO would tie it on a couple of free throws by Asia Woods with 8:27 to play, then would go back up after a Whitley Larry layup to make it 49-47 at the 7:45 mark.
 
But the Cowgirls wouldn't fold as Bre'Ashlee Jones knotted things back up on a layup to make it 49-49 with 6:37 to play, then after UNO built a three-point lead at the two-minute mark, Bolton connected on her fourth three-pointer of the game to tie it at 58-58 with 1:37 to play.
 
UNO re-took the lead 10 seconds later off a layup by Jada Duncantell to make it 60-58 but then Cinthya Rivas, the only senior on the squad who was recognized in a pregame ceremony, knocked down a big bucket to tie things up again with 1:12 to play.
 
Duncantell responded with another quick layup just 12 seconds later to put the Privateers up by 2, then after a Maddox layup was blocked and corralled by UNO, the Privateers took a 63-60 lead with 14 seconds to play after Rehema Franklin hit 1 of 2 from the free throw line.
 
That gave the Cowgirls one last chance to tie the game and possibly extend it into overtime, but a pass by Maddisen Martin to a wide open Rivas in the corner, was out of reach and ended up out of bounds for the turnover.
 
UNO knocked down 1 of 2 from the line again to make it a 64-60 lead.
 
Bolton led four Cowgirls who scored in double-figures, with 17 points while Maddox added 14. Jones collected a double-double with 11 points and 14 rebounds and Balogun added 10 points and eight boards.
 
Duncantell led UNO with 16 points.
 
The Cowgirls will close out their home slate on Wednesday when they host Nicholls at 6:30.