THIBODAUX, La. – The Nicholls State University women's basketball team fell to Stephen F. Austin 86-78 inside Stopher Gym on Thursday night.
 
Both teams started the game strong offensively as Nicholls forced eight turnovers and hit six field goals in the first quarter. Even with SFA connecting on eight shots the Colonels led 19-17 after 10 minutes.
 
In the second quarter the Colonels built a seven-point lead (24-17). However, they struggled to keep the Ladyjacks from getting good looks from distances as SFA hit five triples in the frame while the Colonels hit six total shots. After the action packed second quarter the Colonels trailed 42-33 at the intermission.
 
The third quarter saw both teams connect on seven field goals however the difference was the Ladyjacks hit three from long range while the Colonels hit none. SFA closed the third on a 14-4 run and scored the opening basket of the fourth quarter to build its largest lead of 18 (68-50) with 9:23 to go.
 
The Red & Gray outscored SFA 28-20 in the fourth quarter as they went on multiple scoring surges to get as close as seven multiple times. The deficit was too much to overcome as the Ladyjacks hit foul shots down the stretch to keep the Colonels at distance.
 
Nicholls had four double figure scorers as Emani Burks connected on eight field goals to finish with a season best 17 points while hauling in seven rebounds. Jesslynn Jalomo hit five field goals including four from beyond the arc to finish with 16 points. Sh'Diamond McKnight and Sanaiya Morris added 13 and 12 points respectively.
 
Despite the Colonels forcing 25 turnovers, the Ladyjacks shot 52.6% from the floor and had five double figure scorers. Myka Perry had 20 points, followed by Key Roseby (19), Cha Gardner (14), Lydia Cajuste (11), and Kaylinn Kemp who had 10 points and 11 assists.
 
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The Red & Gray will continue their home stand on Saturday, Jan. 17 against Lamar. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.