Angela Beadle scored 18 points and pulled down 10 rebounds and Laurynn McGowen added 12 points as the Sam Houston women's team lost 72-53 in its second straight game versus Central Arkansas, a team zeroing in on the number one seed at the Southland Conference tournament in Katy in March.

Kendara Watts and Taylor Strickland each scored 14 points to lead the Bears. Taylor Baudoin added 12 points.

Sam Houston held a one-point lead three times in the first quarter but fell behind 18-11 at the period's end. The Bears took a 33-22 lead in the locker room at intermission and led by as many as 22 points in the fourth period.

“We didn't have a great night on offense but we had some defensive bright spots,” Sam Houston head coach Brenda Welch-Nichols said. “Morghen Day held All-Southland guard Maggie Proffitt to seven points. Jasmine McCants also had a great defensive night. But it's hard to play UCA, especially two games in a row. Angela Beadle was big on the inside.”

The Bearkats shot 36 per cent from the floor, going 18-for-50. The Sam women held their own in the paint with both teams totaling 32 points from inside.

"We tried different lineups, but we couldn't find the spark," Welch-Nichols said.

Sam Houston returns to action Saturday in a 4:30 p.m. Southland Conference game against A&M-Corpus Christi. The contest is part of a men's and women's doubleheader against the Islanders. The men will tip off at 7 p.m.