Nashville --- The Tennessee State University women’s basketball team’s season came to an end Friday afternoon at the Sommet Center following a 64-48 loss to Eastern Illinois in the OVC tournament semifinals.

 

Tennessee State finishes the season with an overall record of 18-13, the program’s first winning season since the 1994-95 season.

 

Kendra Appling led the offensive charge for Tennessee State with 18 points while Jasmine Smith just missed her ninth double-double of the season with 12 points and nine rebounds.

 

The Panthers were led by Rachel Galligan with a game-high 25 points to go along with nine boards. Megan Edwards added 15.

 

After a halftime score of 24-24, Eastern Illinois outscored Tennessee State 40-24 in the second half to push to the win.

 

The Panthers used three back-to-back triples to jump out to a 52-37 lead at the 7:59 mark. EIU swelled the lead up to 18 points before TSU rallied to cut the deficit down to 10 with 2:35 left to play.

 

The Panthers, however, nailed six free-throws in the final two minutes to keep the Lady Tigers at bay and advance to the championship game.