ARKADELPHIA – The Ouachita Baptist University women's basketball team defeated Williams Baptist University on Wednesday at home by a final score of 80-59.

It was the final non-conference game for the Tigers. Ouachita (3-3, 1-1 GAC) returns to Great American Conference action this Saturday on the road against Southern Arkansas.

In Wednesday's win over WBU (5-7), freshman Aspen Thornton continued her productive start to her career with 33 points on 11-of-24 shooting. She also connected on 11-of-12 free throws and led the team with nine rebounds.

The first period featured a back-and-forth game with Ouachita holding the biggest advantage of six points on a layup from Makenzie Schilmoeller to put the Tigers up 17-11 with 2:45 remaining. There were three lead changes in the first period, and the Eagles took a one-point lead of 20-19 in the final possession of the first.

Ouachita outscored WBU 19-11 in the second period, which allowed the Tigers to take a seven-point lead of 38-31 into the locker room at the halftime break.

It was more of the same in the second half with a close third period and a runaway for the Tigers in the fourth. Ouachita outscored WBU 24-11 in the final 10 minutes, which allowed the Tigers to hold its largest lead of 21 with 1:21 remaining in regulation. Ouachita put together a 16-0 run that covered five minutes late in the fourth.

In addition to Thornton's game-high 33 points, Makayla Miller added 18 points and seven rebounds.