BELTON, Texas --The Howard Payne University women's basketball team got an 18-point performance from the bench, but fell 71-44 to the Mary Hardin-Baylor Crusaders on the road Saturday.

Hannah Harmon led the Lady Jackets (4-22, 0-8) with eight points, six rebounds and two steals. Madison Clay also tacked on eight points and two steals and Kiana Henning helped out with seven points.

The Howard Payne defense caused its share of mistakes in Saturday's game, forcing 19 Mary Hardin-Baylor turnovers. Those takeaways turned into 17 points on the other end of the floor. Harmon's two steals led the way individually for the Lady Jackets.

How It Happened

Howard Payne struggled out of the gate, falling behind 24-2 at the end of the first quarter.

The Lady Jackets continued to lose ground in the second quarter and faced a 40-12 halftime deficit.

Mary Hardin-Baylor continued to increase its lead after halftime, building a 54-23 advantage before Howard Payne went on a 5-0 run, punctuated by a basket from Azaylee Santos, to trim its deficit to 54-28 with 37 seconds to go in the third, a score which remained until the end of the third quarter. Howard Payne played well near the basket, scoring eight of its 16 points in the paint.

Howard Payne could not pull any closer in the fourth, losing by a final of 71-44. Howard Payne took advantage of five Mary Hardin-Baylor turnovers in the quarter, scoring five points off of those takeaways.

Game Notes

» The Howard Payne bench made an impact by adding 18 points to its scoring output.
» The Howard Payne defense forced 19 turnovers.
» Hannah Harmon and Madison Clay led the Yellow Jackets with eight points each.
» Howard Payne got a team-high six rebounds from Hannah Harmon.

The Lady Jackets will play next on Tuesday in the opening round of the ASC Tournament at LeTourneau University. Details to be announced later on Saturday.