ATLANTA—After winning four straight games, the Oglethorpe Stormy Petrels lost to the Majors of Millsaps College 64-60 in what came down to a battle of free throws in the final minutes of the game. 

Another close and heartbreaking loss to the Majors as the last time these teams met, Millsaps prevailed 63-54 on their home court. 

Morgan Skipper led the Petrels again after a dominant performance and career high in her last outing. Today, the Atlanta native freshman posted 14 points with eight rebounds in 34 minutes. Three Petrels finished with 11 on the game: Malia Melton, Mahkayla Premo and Carley Bell. Melton also grabbed a career high 10 rebounds for the first double-double of her career.

The first quarter was a high-defensive effort and low-scoring affair for both teams. Both teams shot under 50% from the field and only managed to put up a combined 20 points. The Petrels scored the first five points of the quarter before Millsaps' first point halfway through the first. The Majors led 11-9 at the end of the initial quarter of action. Keimarya Rivera recorded four points followed by Melton's three and Skipper's two.

Carly Bell caught fire from beyond the three-point arc in the second quarter as she sank three 3-point shots in an Oglethorpe 13-5 run over Millsaps helping to take the lead entering halftime. The Petrels began to pull away in the second quarter, doubling their opponent's scoring efforts, outscoring the Majors 16-8 in the quarter.

Thanks to a late run at the end of the half, the Petrels soared past Millsaps heading into halftime leading 25-19. Bell finished with nine in the quarter, Skipper posted another three, and Rivera added one from the free-throw line.

There was no lack of offensive firepower coming out of the half for either side, as both teams nearly dropped 20 points on one another. Thanks to efforts from Skipper, Melton and Premo, the Petrels managed to drop 19 third-quarter points just behind Millsaps at 20 points.

Oglethorpe continued to get to the line and shoot well from distance shooting 5-6 from the free-throw line and 40% from beyond the three. The pair of freshmen, Skipper and Premo, both posted six points in the quarter while Melton followed with five of her own. An all-around team effort in the third secured the Petrels maintaining their lead this time at 44-39 heading into the fourth quarter. 

The final quarter of action proved no different than the earlier quarters as the score was within two or three points throughout almost the entirety of the quarter. The Petrels began with a five-point lead at the start of the quarter, but Millsaps continued to get to the free-throw line and was able to maintain a two-point lead over Oglethorpe for most of the quarter. Six Petrels contributed to the team's 16 fourth-quarter points, but it was not enough as Millsaps secured the win 64-60.

After a win on Friday put them into a tie for third in Southern Athletic Association standing, the Stormy Petrels now sit at 11-10 on their season and 5-6 in SAA play which has them as the fifth seed, one game back of Millsaps and Berry. Oglethorpe will host Berry in the regular season finale.

Game Notes

• Melton notched her first career double-double with 11 points and a career high 10 rebounds.
• Skipper matched her career high of eight rebounds.
• Oglethorpe moved to 11-10 on the season and has won four of the last five games.
• Oglethorpe has three games left before the SAA tournament.

Up Next

Oglethorpe is back on the road after hosting its last four Southern Athletic Association games. The Petrels take a visit to Danville, Kentucky, to play the Colonels of Centre College before they stop in Sewanee, Tennessee, to play the Tigers of Sewanee on the way home. Tip-off against the Colonels is set for Friday, Feb. 10, at 6 p.m., while the game at Sewanee is set to begin at 2 p.m. EST on Sunday, Feb. 12.

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