FARMVILLE, Va. — Despite a Division I-era record 36 points from Big South Freshman of the Year frontrunner Kyla McMakin and a fourth-quarter comeback, Presbyterian held off a late-charging Longwood team in the closing minutes of overtime to pull out an 82-77 win Saturday afternoon in Willett Hall.

Longwood (10-11, 6-6 Big south) leaned on McMakin and her Longwood D-I-era record 36 points to overcome a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter with a 14 unanswered points that gave the Lancers a 64-61 lead with 32 seconds to play. But Presbyterian guard Jade Compton knocked down a game-tying three-pointer nine seconds later to tie the game and send it to overtime where compton and Trinity Johnson keyed an early 7-0 that the Blue Hose rode to a five-point win. 

McMakin finished 11-of-22 shooting from the floor with six treys and scored 23 of her points after halftime en route to surpassing senior teammate Dayna Rouse's previous school-record 34 points in last year's Feb. 2 matchup against Gardner-Webb. However, that effort was put to use largely helping Longwood overcome a sluggish first half in which Presbyterian forced the Lancers into 11 turnovers and entered the locker room with a 38-28 lead. 

Longwood finally got back on track with a 20-point third quarter before the fourth-quarter run that eventually sent the game to overtime.

"From the jump, we were slow, but we have such a fighting mentality we were able to come back at the end," McMakin said. "We fought hard in this game, and we have a lot to take away from today's game.

"We just have to keep fighting. The game is never over until the horn goes off, and we learned that today. We did a really good job of fighting at the end. In overtime we lost it with the fouls but we have to keep fighting. As a team, we are going to learn how to handle certain game situations once we get into them more."

The loss brings the Lancers back to .500 in Big South play with a 6-6 record on the year with eight league games left on the schedule for Longwood. The Lancers remain just two wins shy of matching the program record for Big South wins, set with an 8-10 finish by Longwood's 2012-13 squad.

The Blue Hose controlled the game for the first half as Compton and McMakin finished with 13 points apiece in the first 20 minutes of action, with both woman knocking down three treys in the half. Presbyterian entered the break with a 10 point advantage over the Lancers. 

Longwood rebounded after the break with a 14-0 run in the final frame of play sparked by an eight point quarter from McMakin, giving the Lancers their first lead of the contest. McMakin converted one of her 11 field goals with 32 seconds on the clock gibing Longwood a three point advantage. 

Presbyterian answered right away with Compton converting on a three to even the score at 64-64 sending the Lancers and Blue Hose into overtime.

The Blue Hose began overtime with a 9-0 run giving them an advantage that Longwood despite their best effort to cut the deficit to three points off of a McMakin jump shot, could not overcome in the final seconds as Presbyterian held on to defeat Longwood, 82-77. 

McMakin continues to make her case for Big South Freshman of the Year with her first 30 point performance of her career and the first for the Lancers this season. McMakin added four steals and three rebounds to her record-breaking performance. 

Joining McMakin in double-figures, one point shy of matching her career-high was Akila Smith. Smith finished 8-of-10 from the floor with 17 points and added five rebounds and four assists to her performance. 

"Akila handled the challenge well, for her and Kyla to come out and perform the way they did is excellent—that's the expectation for them," added associate head coach Tiffany Sardin. "These performances are what Akila and Kyla are capable of doing every time they get on the court."

"Certainly proud of our Women's effort of not quitting, and we played with a lot of fight," added coach Sardin. "We made some big shots to close out the game, but going into overtime, we didn't get stops at first, but you have to love our women's effort to keep fighting. Credit to Presbyterian, they did a good job and came into today with a really good game plan."

Longwood finished with a season-best 21 assists as a team in the loss with Tra'Dayja Smith, Akila Smith, and Dayna Rouse distributing four assists apiece, and seven of the eight Lancers who took the floor recorded at least one assists. 

The Lancers will attempt to rebound with a quick turnaround on the road against the Runnin' bulldogs of Gardner-Webb. This will mark the third straight Big South opponent that the Lancers defeated in their previous matchup. Tippoff against the Runnin' Bulldogs in Boiling Springs, N.C. is set for 7 p.m.

"We always know our women will fight," said head coach Rebecca Tillett. "It is a special quality they share. Presbyterian was well prepared and attacked some of our defensive weaknesses. We do not have the defensive identity that we want yet. Yet is the keyword because we have an opportunity to prepare for another talented Big South opponent in Gardner-Webb."

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