LYNCHBURG, VA. – A ferocious comeback in the final minutes by Liberty saw Jacksonville State women's basketball suffer a 72-62 loss in overtime. 
 
The Gamecocks (11-10, 4-6) led by as many as 10 points in the fourth period but could not hold onto the lead in Lynchburg. As a result, an opportunistic Flames (14-7, 8-2) squad came roaring back down the stretch and downed Jax State with a massive overtime period. 
 
"I thought that, overall, for the first 38 minutes, we did what we needed to do," Jacksonville State head coach Rick Pietri said. "It wasn't perfect, because we had some breakdowns, but the first 38 was good enough. In the last two, we imploded."
 
Big performances in the first by Keiara Griffin and Kennedy Gavin helped Pietri's squad to a 14-12 advantage. Griffin had a period-best seven points and Gavin's six assured the two-point lead. After shooting south of 30% from the field in the opening ten minutes, Jax State was 6-of-14 (42.9%) from the field in the second quarter to maintain their advantage. A late steal from NeKiyah Thompson paired with a buzzer-beating layup from Shawnta Shaw created a two-point difference, 29-27, at the break.
 
Either side had a dominant period in the second half. The Gamecocks outscored Liberty 16-9 in the third interval, but a 23-14 fourth for the Flames sent the game into overtime. Jax State went on a 9-0 run to finish the third period, but a 7-0 spurt to close the game tied it at the end of regulation. The Gamecocks had a chance to retake the lead but missed two shots in the final ten seconds. A foul shortly thereafter sent LU's Dee Brown to the free throw line, but a pair of misses sent the game into overtime. 
 
Overtime was simply not Jacksonville State's period on Thursday night. Liberty hit an immediate three to start the stanza and never looked back, outpacing the Gamecocks 13-3 to tally a 72-62 victory. 
 
Kennedy Gavin had team-bests in 14 points and nine rebounds and Shawnta Shaw added 12 points and seven boards. Keiara Griffin and Brooklyn McDaniel ended up with 10 and seven points respectively.
 
Jacksonville State was out-rebounded 41-35 by a much taller Liberty team, but Jax State's defense forced 18 turnovers. The Flames had twice as many points in the paint (44) than the Gamecocks, but Pietri's women had advantages in points off turnovers (20-14) and second chance points (10-6).
 
Jacksonville State heads to Charlotte, N.C., on Saturday afternoon for another ASUN Conference test with Queens, who defeated Kennesaw State 79-75 on Thursday evening. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. CT and the contest will be broadcast on ESPN+ and the Gamecock Sports Network. 
 
Links to follow along with live stats, watch, or listen to the game will be provided at JSUGamecockSports.com. Score updates and highlights will be posted on JSU women's basketball's Twitter account (@JaxStateWBB). 
 
To stay up-to-date with the Gamecocks, be sure to follow their Facebook (Jacksonville State University Women's Basketball), Twitter (@JaxStateWBB), and Instagram (@JaxStateWBB) accounts.