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Bolivar, Mo. - The SBU Bearcats picked up their first win of the 2016-17 season with a 94-88 overtime victory over Henderson State on Friday. The win puts the Bearcats record at 1-0 (0-0 MIAA) on the season.

The game started with 2 free-throws from Caylee Richardson early in the first quarter which put the Bearcats on top 2-0. The game stayed tight between the two teams with shots from Megan Rosenbohm and Aliyah Isaac being answered by shots from Henderson State to keep the game tied 6-6 with 6:11 left in the first quarter. Henderson State pulled ahead 10-6 before Rosenbohm scored on a jumper to pull the Bearcats back within 2 points (10-8 Henderson State) with 3:48 on the clock. After Richardson scored on a layup, the Reddies would go on a 6-0 run before Rosenbohm would score twice to pull the Bearcats within 4 points (14-18 Henderson State) with only 0:30 left in the first quarter. The Reddies would drop one more shot causing the Bearcats to head into the second quarter down 20-14.

Richardson again opened up play when she scored on a 3-pointer pulling the Bearcats within 3 (17-20) less than a minute into the second quarter. Strong defense for both teams kept the quarter scoreless until Henderson State went on a 10-0 run putting the Bearcats down 30-17 with 5:20 left in the half. After a 3-pointer by Rosenbohm, shots by Henderson State extended the Reddies lead to 33-20 over the Bearcats. The Bearcats didn't give up and pushed to outscore the Reddies 10-4 to pull with 7 points as they went into the half trailing 37-30.

The Bearcats came back from the half a new team as shots from Rosenbohm and Morgan Henderson quickly landed to give SBU the lead 39-37 only a couple minutes into the 3rd quarter. Henderson State connected on a few free-throws but SBU kept them down as layups from Mackenzie Skupa and Henderson kept SBU ahead 43-41 with 6:36 left in the 3rd quarter. The Reddies fought back to tie it up again, but a small 5-0 run by Skupa and Isaac kept the Bearcat lead. Shortly afterwards, SBU went on a 10-0 run to push their lead to 58-46 with 0:36 left on the clock. Henderson State went on a short run to pull within 7 to cut the SBU lead to 58-51 after three quarters of play.

Henderson State fought back, but well-timed shots from Kiana Peterson and Henderson kept the Bearcat lead in double-digits (66-56). Shots continued to fall for both teams as SBU continued their lead well into the 4th quarter. Henderson State pulled within 6 points but Rosenbohm's 3-pointer and Isaac's jumper extended SBU's lead to 73-62 with 6:02 left in the 4th quarter. Henderson State pulled within 3 points but Richardson's 3-pointer helped SBU maintain a slim lead at 79-73 with 1:47 on the clock. Down the stretch Henderson State would outscore the Bearcats 7-1 to tie the game at 80-80 forcing overtime.

SBU came out ready as Skupa fought her way into the paint to score on a layup giving SBU their first lead in overtime (82-80). After a 3-pointer by Henderson State, Skupa went up for a jumper which landed to bringing the score to 84-83 with 3:01 left in OT. The scoring went back and forth with SBU continuously coming out on top. Forcing Henderson State to foul yet again, SBU went 10-10 from the free-throw line to win their season opener 94-88.

Megan Rosenbohm gave a stellar performance with a team high 35 points which ties for 4th highest point total in a single game in SBU history. Offensively, Aliyah Isaac contributed 14 points, Morgan Henderson 12 points, and both Caylee Richardson and Mackenzie Skupa had 10 points apiece to assist in the Bearcat win. Leading the way in rebounds was newcomer Kiana Peterson with 8 rebounds while Megan Rosenbohm and Mackezie Skupa were close behind with 7 rebounds apiece. As a team, SBU shot 45.7% from the field, 32.1% from behind the 3-point line, and a stunning 87.5% from the free-throw line.

The women will be back in action Saturday, November 12th to continue the SBU Classic against Ouachita Baptist University. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. from the Meyer Sports Center in Bolivar.