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CHARLESTON, ILL. - The Panthers held on to defeat Morehead State with a big win on Saturday night. EIU fought through the tough defense of the Eagles and held on in overtime after a big three pointer by Jordyn Hughes. Eastern struggled at times, but Karle Pace kept them in it, much like the last game the two teams played. Pace ended with 27 points, with five coming in overtime to seal a Panther victory. The Panthers record moves up to 14-9 (8-4 OVC), while Morehead State falls to 9-15 (5-7 OVC). 

The Panthers started off on fire in the first quarter. Pace put up 13 points and stripped the Eagles twice as EIU sat firmly in the drivers seat. The Panthers showed no signs of slowing down. Then came the second quarter. The Panthers and the Eagles went scoreless for six minutes before the Eagles went to the line and made a free throw.  The Panthers were not so lucky, as they didn't score the entire quarter. Most teams would fold under such pressure, but the Panthers continued to battle, played good defense and prepared for the second half.

The Panthers returned to form in the third quarter; shooting 47% on the quarter and scoring 20 points to Morehead State's 12. The Panthers stormed back, with a 7 point quarter from Pace and 6 points from Morgan Litwiller. The Panthers continued to force the Eagles into tough shots and turnovers. 

After the third, Eastern struggled from the field again. Additionally, the defense let Morehead State score much easier, and with some luck Morehead State had taken the lead. Pace found Lariah Washington cutting to the basket and put the ball in her hands for the game-tying basket. After a steal by Hughes, the Panthers called a timeout and wrote up a quick inbound play to Washington. Washington got the ball inside and shot, but came up just short as the Panthers and Eagles headed to overtime.

Eastern was ready in overtime, as they forced the Eagles into more turnovers and more misses. The Panthers held Morehead State to 7 point in overtime and it was enough to seal a home victory. This is the Panthers third win in a row, and the team will look to continue this success against SIUE next Thursday. Pace is creeping ever so close to the 1,000 point mark, as she needs only 6 points to hit the mark. She would be the 25th player in Eastern women's basketball history to hit that mark.