by Megan Murray
sports editor
The Millsaps Majors women’s basketball team defeated the Oglethorpe Stormy Petrels in a come-from-behind conference win on Friday night. Things weren’t looking good for the Majors in the first half with point guard Sam Perez leaving early in the period with a lingering knee injury. In addition, Oglethorpe outscored the Majors 37-28 in the first half with six devastating three-pointers and defensive speed that proved too much for the Majors’ offense to handle. With a 7-0 run by the Stormy Petrels to end the first half, including a three-pointer by Oglethorpe guard Kristen Kennebrew with two seconds left on the clock, the Majors entered half-time with a ninepoint deficit.
The second half, however, belonged to the Majors. With the Hanger Dome crowd behind them, the Majors surged ahead and outscored the Stormy Petrels 43-29 in the second half. Beverly Homes led the Majors with 23 points, including five key three-pointers.
With Perez out, backup point guard Katie Connor came in and stepped up. A crowd favorite, Connor excited the Hanger Dome and her teammates with a crucial three-pointer in a 12-0 run by the Majors. Teammate Kala Freeman said, “We’ve been practicing Katie all week and she’s ready. She’s ready for these big moments and she’s been stepping up for us, and that’s what we need her.”
It came down to the wire for the Majors, with only a three point lead and five seconds left in the game. Consistent free throws allowed the Majors to defeat the Stormy Petrels by a thin margin of 71-66.
Freeman offered insight on how the Majors were able to come back strong in the second-half and pick up their fifth conference win: “We just went to defense. Defense and boxing out. That’s what we have to do. That’s what got us here; that’s what got us 5-0 in conference. That’s what Coach instilled in us from the very beginning. We just had to go back to our grounds and pull it out with some defense.”
The Majors are currently ranked first in the Southern Athletic Conference and play Hendrix on Friday at 6 in the Hanger Dome.