EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Women's basketball Senior Night didn't go as planned as Tennessee Tech downed Southern Illinois University Edwardsville 68-52 Tuesday at the Vadalabene Center.

Tacarra Hayes scored 22 of her game-high 24 points for Tennessee Tech in the second half, which improved to 21-6. Kellie Cook was the only other player in double figures

"Our defense is set up to disrupt, and we definitely didn't disrupt in the second half," said SIUE Head Coach Amanda Levens, whose team fell to 9-16. The Golden Eagles shot 61.5 percent from the field in the second half.

The Cougars shot 30.8 percent from the field and did not get on track offensively Tuesday. "We played on our heels a bit and didn't make good decisions," said Levens. "When we got easy opportunities we either missed layup or fumbled the ball. We have to take better advantage of those opportunities when they come to us."

Freshman Jazmin Hill led SIUE's offense with 19 points. Senior Sydney Stahlberg and sophomore Raven Berry added 10 points each.

Levens honored seniors Stahlberg and Whitney Champlin.

"Both Sydney and Whitney exemplify what we want our players to be," said Levens.

Both players have made strides on and off the court.

"Sydney is probably going to go to medical school, and she is going to be fantastic at it because she won't settle for anything less than that," Levens said. "Whitney has a master's degree in five years. That's amazing and tells you what her work ethic is."

SIUE now has its final five games on the road beginning with Saturday's matchup at Cal State Bakersfield. Game time is set for 7 p.m. PT.

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