CONWAY, Ark. – Despite a furious comeback in the third quarter, the Central Arkansas women's basketball team couldn't quite seal the deal in the fourth, falling 65-57 to Lipscomb Saturday afternoon. Three Sugar Bears scored in double-figures, but a free throw discrepancy in the fourth allowed the Bisons to edge away before the buzzer.
 
The Sugar Bears (6-12, 1-6 ASUN) were led by Randrea Wright, who had a season-high 20 points including a career-best two triples. Kinley Fisher matched her season-best with 16, and Siera Carter hit double-digits for the second time this year with 10 of her own.
 
After starting the last few games well, offense was not easy to come by in the opening frame. Central Arkansas was able to hold onto a one-possession lead through the first media timeout. But after Kierra Prim hit a layup to take a 9-6 lead, Lipscomb put together a 15-0 run to close the frame, racing ahead and threatening to pull away early.
 
Central Arkansas stayed locked in, though, settling in and keeping the lead from getting out of hand. Wright and Fisher combined for 14 of the team's 15 points in the quarter, fighting the lead back to single digits by the halftime buzzer. With a minute left in the half, Wright scored a midrange jumper, ripped possession away from the Bison point guard, and scored again to put a personal 4-0 run together to close the half out at 33-24.
 
Coming out of halftime, the Sugar Bears started the second half with a jolt of energy and focus, opening with a 4-0 run to cut the lead to five before an answer from Lipscomb at the 7:10 mark. Undeterred, the Sugar Bears embarked on an 11-0 run over the next 3:07 to storm back and take a four-point lead. Four players scored in the run, led by Kyjai Miles' four points, and just like that, Central Arkansas had all the momentum against the ASUN's second-ranked team. With under a minute to play in the third, Fisher would knock down her third three with forty seconds left to push the lead to five.
 
Central Arkansas allowed just eight points in the third, locking down the ASUN's third-best scoring offense and steamrolling to 22 points of its own. The Sugar Bears shot 60 percent in the frame while holding the Bisons to just 20 percent from the floor. Wright and Fisher each added a three-pointer in the quarter, and helped Central Arkansas outscore the Bisons 7-2 on second chance opportunities.
 
The fourth quarter, however, would be anything but in favor of the home team. Lipscomb started a parade to the free throw line, earning trip after trip to earn 13 freebies in the fourth. And seemingly in spite of the effort from the Sugar Bears, shots on the other end just weren't falling, as the lead disappeared for Central Arkansas and grew for Lipscomb. After being outscored by ten points just at the free throw line, the Sugar Bears didn't have enough in the tank to finish the job.
 
Back on the road for the next pair of games, Central Arkansas makes its trip to Jacksonville State and Kennesaw State next week, starting off with a rematch with the Gamecocks on Thursday before heading to Kennesaw, Ga., to face the Owls on Saturday.