TULSA, Okla. – St. Edward's women's basketball completed its sweep of the Heartland Conference regular season and tournament titles Sunday with a 52-44 victory over Lubbock Christian in the championship game.
 
KHIANI CLARK was named tournament MVP as she scored 20 points and grabbed seven rebounds in the finale. Fatheree joined Clark on the all-tournament team after averaging 11.7 points per game in the tournament. SHAKERA BARNES finished the game with seven assists.
 
St. Edward's (20-8) punches its ticket to the NCAA South Central Regional tournament with the win. Lubbock Christian closes its season with a record of 19-11 after going undefeated and winning the national championship in 2015-16.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Defense reigned supreme in the opening period as St. Edward's shot 28 percent from the floor and Lubbock Christian shot 30 percent.
• Clark drained a pair of free throws with under a minute remaining to give the Hilltoppers a 12-8 lead after the first quarter.
• An evenly contested second quarter ended with BAILEY HILL draining a 3-pointer at the buzzer to make it 23-20, Hilltoppers.
• Hill hit two 3-pointers in the third quarter, increasing SEU's lead to 29-24.
• The Lady Chaps battled back, tying the game at 33 with one quarter left to play.
• Clark sparked a 9-0 run with 8:19 to play in the game, and the Hilltoppers never looked back.

 
HILLTOPPER NOTES

• St. Edward's wins the season series against Lubbock Christian after splitting two games in the regular season.
• Head Coach J.J. Riehl is 7-3 all time in Heartland Tournament play, and has won two tournament titles in five years.
• SEU's last NCAA postseason appearance came in the 2013-14 season after the Hilltoppers defeated St. Mary's in the tournament championship.
• The Lady Chaps eliminated St. Edward's from postseason play in last season's Heartland Tournament Championship game.

 
QUOTE BOARD: HEAD COACH J.J. RIEHL
"It was a great game. What an unbelievable matchup between two really good programs. Lubbock Christian is a great team, and they are incredibly difficult to play, year in and year out. In the last three to five minutes I think our senior leadership was the difference. Our will to win and our will to be successful outweighed the opposition."
 
UP NEXT
St. Edward's opens the NCAA South Central Regional tournament Friday. The host site for the tournament and the Hilltoppers' opponent will be announced Sunday night on the NCAA Selection show at 9 p.m. Live stats and video of the game will be available at GoHilltoppers.com.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Score: St. Edward's 52, Lubbock Christian 44
Records: St. Edward's (20-8), Lubbock Christian (19-11)
Leading Scorers: St. Edward's-Clark (20), Lubbock Christian-Chitsey (14)
Attendance: 426
 
For the latest information on the St. Edward's University Women's Basketball team, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @SEUWBasketball, or visit us at www.GoHilltoppers.com.