RICHMOND, Ky. - Snapping a three game losing streak, the Eastern Kentucky University women's basketball team defeated Eastern Illinois Monday night, 72-62.

The Lady Colonels led nearly the entire first half before giving Eastern Illinois its first lead of the night with 3:45 left in the first half. Eastern Illinois took a 36-29 advantage into the locker room at halftime.

With 13:25 remaining in the game, the Lady Colonels cut the Lady Panthers lead to one, making the score 41-40 in favor of EIU. Over the next three and a half minutes, the Lady Colonels went on a 10-2 run to take the lead, 51-44. Eastern Kentucky extended the lead to as much as 12 points in the final half. With just over one minute to play, Eastern Illinois cut the Lady Colonel lead to 66-61, but that was as close as the Lady Panthers could get. Eastern Kentucky finished the final minute of play on a 6-1 run to defeat the Lady Panthers.

A solid defensive effort from the entire Lady Colonel squad helped the team earn the win. Eastern Illinois' center Leah Aldrich entered the contest as the Ohio Valley Conference's leading scorer, pouring in 23 points per outing. EKU held Aldrich to only nine points on three of 11 shooting from the field.

"This was our best defensive effort of the season," said EKU head coach Larry Joe Inman. "Our defense has been a concern for us all season and its still a concern. We can't just play this one game. Our goal is to hold our opponents to 65 points or less. We did that tonight, holding Eastern Illinois to 62 points.

"What I'm really, really proud of is the way our defense stepped up. Our post did a great job on Aldrich."

The Lady Colonels were led in scoring by sophomore forward Charlotte Sizemore. Sizemore tied a career-high with a 25-point effort in the win. She also added three assists and five rebounds. Freshman guard Mikki Bond continued her great play, as she added 16 points and pulled down a game-high 10 boards to record her second consecutive double-double in her first season. Bond also dished out four assists. Sophomore center Candice Finley added 10 points and seven rebounds.

"When I look at the game statistics, the first thing that jumps out at me is the great game by Candice Finley, Charlotte Sizemore and Mikki Bond," said Inman. "Then, I see the great defense of our post players (Finley, Jennifer King, Shannon Browning and Cathy Dues). Those players really stepped up in the final five to six minutes of the game, not only defensively, but on offense as well."

With the win, Eastern Kentucky improves to 5-6 overall and 2-2 in the OVC. The Lady Colonels will try to put together a run as they return home for two league games. EKU will entertain Tennessee State at 6:30 PM on Thursday, before hosting Austin Peay in a 2:00 PM contest on Saturday.

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