Southern Defeated by Eastern Kentucky - Southern Illinois University Athletics

Thursday, November 12

Richmond, KY

5 PM

Southern Illinois University

0-3,0-0MVC

Eastern Kentucky

4-1,0-0UAC

Team	1	2	3	4	F
Southern Ill.	15	11	12	19	57
Eastern Ky.	17	20	15	19	71

Photo by: Corey Crombar

11/12/2026 | 7:26:00 | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: Corey Crombar, SIUSalukis.com

RICHMOND, Ky. - The Saluki Women's Basketball team dropped Thursday night's contest against the Eastern Kentucky Colonels 71-57 at Baptist Health Arena.

Both teams had solid starts to the game. Both sides had a solid presence on both sides of the ball. However, a Colonel-dominated second quarter set the Salukis back heading into halftime. The second half saw even play from both squads, but the Colonels dominated the boards. Eastern Kentucky finished the night with a 48-29 rebound advantage. Rebounds and being outplayed in the paint hurt the Salukis in the long run. Despite a season-low 11 turnovers and season-high 16 steals, the Dawgs fell short Thursday. The Colonels defeated the Salukis 71-57.

Leading the Salukis offensively was Kayla Cooper and Tkiyah Nelson, with 14 and 12 points respectively. Shakara McCline and Braxcynn Baker fell just shy of the double-digit point mark with 9 points each. Cooper also led the team in rebounds with 7. McCline recorded an impressive five steals, while Cooper and Nelson both tallied 4.

Three Colonels scored double-digits, with Kirsten Lewis-Williams leading the way with 20 points. Kailani Lindsey had a 15-point, 11-rebound double-double.

UP NEXT
The Salukis return home to the Banterra Center on Tuesday, November 17 at 6 p.m. for a battle with the Eastern Illinois Panthers.

FOLLOW THE SALUKIS
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Salukis by following the team on Twitter (X) at @SIU_WBasketball, on Instagram at @SIU_WBasketball, and on Facebook at Facebook.com/SalukiAthletics. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.