Trojan Seniors Refuse to Lose on Senior Day as Little Rock Sweeps A-State

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Arkansas State had everything they wanted within their grasps. A chance for a rivalry win, to prevent a sweep, to ruin Little Rock's Senior Day and a chance to claim a program-first win at the Jack Stephens Center.
 
Enter Little Rock's seniors, Teal Battle and Krystan Vornes. Two women, on a mission, determined to make a memorable Senior Day for themselves.
 
Battle registered a double-double with a career high-tying 25 points with 11 rebounds while Vornes scored 12 points and hit critical free throws down the stretch as Little Rock rallied for a 60-56 overtime win over Arkansas State Saturday. Tia Harvey added a career-high 16 points for Little Rock.
 
The win for the Trojans (12-7, 8-4 Sun Belt) not only stymied the hopes of the Red Wolves (9-9, 4-8) but also kept Little Rock within a half-game of UT Arlington's second place spot in the Sun Belt's West Division, a place that comes with a first round by in the conference tournament.
 
Little Rock also extended a home winning streak to five consecutive games and kept A-State winless all-time (0-16) at the Jack Stephens Center.
 
But it didn't come easy and the late rally relied on Battle scoring from a rarely used position – beyond the arc. Over the final 10 minutes of playing time (in the fourth quarter and overtime combined), Battle hit a career-high five 3-pointers, scoring 15 of her game-high 25 points in the final 15 minutes and from long range to lead the Trojans back for the win.
 
"I saw a kid that wanted to win the game," Little Rock Head Coach Joe Foley said of his senior's performance.
 
Her first made shot came with just 3:47 remaining in regulation as Little Rock trailed by six points. Cutting that deficit in half with a wide-open shot, she got another undefended chance from long range with 75 seconds left, cutting a then-four point deficit to one.
 
Less than 20 seconds later, A-State turned the ball over. Mayra Caicedo, who led all players with nine assists, immediately dished the ball to Battle for the trifecta of 3-pointers, turning the one-point deficit into a two-point lead. This time, the Red Wolves guarded Battle's shot but the result remained the same.
 
But Arkansas State's Jada Stinson hit a jumper in the paint with 25 seconds left in regulation to tie the game and send Little Rock into an overtime period for the first time since March 3, 2018.
 
Battle continued her hot shooting from beyond the arc in the overtime period, twice turning a deficit into a Trojan advantage. The second of which, coming with 1:20 left in overtime, would give Little Rock a lead that they would not relinquish.
 
Then the focus went to Vornes as she drew a pair of fouls and remained perfect from the free throw line. A day after going 6-for-6 from the charity stripe up in Jonesboro, she replicated that performance in Little Rock with four of her free throws coming in the final 13 seconds of overtime to seal the victory.
 
Arkansas State was led by Trinitee Jackson's 13 points while Peyton Martin scored 12. Karolina Szydlowska, who led the Red Wolves with a game-high 17 points in Friday's contest, was limited to just two points in Saturday's overtime thriller.
 
Little Rock shot just 33.9% from the field but had just a 27.9% mark entering the fourth quarter. Arkansas State led for over 34.5 minutes of play and even held a lead for over half of the overtime period. But the Red Wolves, which shot 42.6% in the game, hit just 2 of 7 shots (28.6%) in the extra period.
 
The win marked a season sweep for Little Rock over A-State, the first sweep of the Red Wolves since the 2017-18 season.
 
Little Rock, which wrapped up its home schedule with an 8-5 mark at the Jack Stephens Center this season, will finish the regular season on the road starting with a pair of games at ULM next weekend, starting Friday at 3 p.m.
 
For the latest information on Little Rock Basketball, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockWBB on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
 
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