Photo courtesy of Dallin Grant

Addasyn Scrivner hit a free throw with less than one second left, lifting the USU Eastern Eagles past the Snow College Badgers 51-50 Thursday night in Ephraim.

USU Eastern held possession in the closing moments of regulation. A sideline lob to Scrivner resulted in a foul, putting her at the line with 0.3 seconds left on the clock. After sinking the first shot, Scrivner missed the second, leading to the exciting victory.

The game-winning free throw capped off a come-from-behind effort as the Eagles outscored the Badgers 18-12 in the final quarter.

Madison Anderson helped lead the Eagles to the win, scoring a team-high 13 points. Anderson’s presence was felt on both ends of the floor, finishing with five steals and four blocks, both a team-best.

Mckenzie Allen poured in 12 points, all from beyond the perimeter. Scrivner scored 11 points and handed out five assists. Ellie Esplin helped balance out the overall team performance with eight points.

The defense played a crucial role in igniting the USU Eastern offense, scoring 31 points off 33 forced turnovers. Second-chance points also played a factor, as the Eagles gathered 12 offensive rebounds, scoring 11 off the extra opportunities.

Iyana Beh was the lone Badger to reach double-figures, leading Snow College with 15 points on an efficient 5-of-8 shooting. Brooke Pennington scored nine points and Seini Tuipulotu added seven.

Thursday’s win was vital for the Eagles, snapping a two-game losing skid, while running their conference record to 3-3. With two wins over Snow College and now the season-series tie-breaker, the Eagles hold a two-game advantage over the Badgers for the fourth and final spot in the conference tournament.

The Eagles will now receive a break, getting a full week off before traveling to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho on Thursday, Jan. 30. The lengthy trip will continue on Saturday, Feb. 1 in Twin Falls against the College of Southern Idaho.