KATY, Texas – For the first time in program history, the University of the Incarnate Word women's basketball team won the Southland Conference Tournament. The Cardinals topped Southeastern Louisiana (SLU), 56-52, in a thrilling overtime classic on Sunday afternoon to earn an automatic qualifying bid to the NCAA women's basketball tournament.
 
"I am incredibly proud of our team," said UIW Head Coach Jeff Dow. "One of our 'Keys to Victory' for today's game was being resilient. And time and time again, we were. We knew it would take a complete effort for 40 minutes and ended up having to go 45! To play like that, in overtime, and win the fourth game in four days shows the fight and resilience of this team. This is a terrific win, not only for our program, but for UIW Athletics and our University as a whole."
 
Tiana Gardner was crowned Southland Conference Tournament MVP after four consecutive solid performances. On Sunday, Gardner knocked in 22 points while nailing crucial free throws down the stretch. Jaaucklyn Moore, who hit the game-winning 3-pointer against Nicholls in the opening game, was also selected for the all-tournament team.
 
With the score tied at 52-52 with 27 seconds left in overtime, Moore stayed calm and capped the weekend with a clutch jumper to give the Cardinals the advantage (54-52). Gardner then sank two free throws to secure the overtime victory, 56-52.
 
After a defensive battle in the first quarter that kept the score to a low 5-5 matchup, the Lady Lions came out on a 4-0 scoring run to start the second quarter. After a back-and-forth battle throughout, SLU ended the half with a 3-pointer as time expired to go up, 25-20, heading into the halftime break.
 
The battle continued into the second half and the Cardinals fought to tie the contest, 32-32, at the end of the third quarter. Jamie Means and Gardner led the way on both ends of the court. Gardner came out in the fourth quarter fighting in every possession. She scored UIW's first 10 points to give the Cardinals a two-point advantage (42-40) with 2:33 remaining.
 
Trailing by two (50-48), Gardner drove to the basket and was fouled with 0.5 left on the clock. The junior from Austin sank a pair from the charity stripe to force overtime. UIW battled on both sides of the ball for the final five minutes, ultimately clinching a 56-52 victory, its first Southland Conference title and the program's first trip to the NCAA tournament.
 
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