Henderson State could not overcome a hot start from Southern Arkansas, as the Reddies fell 80-71 in the opening round of the Great American Conference Tournament on Friday night in Bartlesville, Okla.

Southern Arkansas Stormed out to a 22-11 lead after one quarter of play, and held a 45-34 lead at the halftime break.

HSU finished the contest knocking down 24-of-57 attempts for 42 percent shooting, while SAU was 31-of-70 for 44 percent.

With just under eight minutes to play, Haleigh Henson knocked down back-to-back three-pointers to pull HSU within seven, making the score 69-62 with 7:18 to play.

However, SAU would answer with a 7-0 run over the next two minutes to extend the lead back out to 12, and HSU could climb no closer to cut into the Lady Mulerider lead.

Leading the way for HSU was Henson, as the sophomore from Greenwood, Ark. poured in 22 points, knocking down five three pointers.

Henson finishes the season with 77 made three-pointers, three more than her freshman season and ranks second in HSU history in three-point makes in a single-season.

Victoria Stewart also had a big game with 18 pionts and dished out four assists, while Dulincia Keener had nine points and 13 boards.

Keener finishes her career at HSU with 1238 points and an even 800 career rebounds, ranking first all-time in career boards for the Reddies.

The Reddies were out-rebounded 45-to-36 in the contest, and committed 14 turnovers while forcing eight from SAU.

The Reddies outmatched SAU 11-to-8 in fast break points, but gave up 24 points off of turnovers while scoring just eight.

Southern Arkansas was led by Tierra Tucker with 21 points, while Rosa Bryant pitched in 19 points and pulled down 17 boards.

Henderson State ends the season with a 14-15 overall record, and finished the regular season GAC race with a 13-9 mark.