After being honored prior to the game for scoring her 1,000th point last weekend, senior Chelsea Benham (Taswell, Ind.) tied the game with less than a second left in regulation to force overtime, and the Centre College women's basketball team out-scored Birmingham Southern 14-8 in the extra period to win 75-69 Friday, Feb. 8 in Danville, Ky.

The win put the Colonels over .500 for the first time this year and ups their record to 11-10 overall and 9-2 in the Southern Athletic Association (SAA), while the Panthers fall to 10-12 overall and 5-6 in league play.

Centre, playing in its pink uniforms to raise money for breast cancer research, led 9-4 just under three and a half minutes into the first half, but Birmingham Southern scored 13 of the game's next 17 points to take a 17-14 lead at the 9:24 mark.

Trailing 20-18, freshman Alexis Guy (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) hit a jumper for the first of eight unanswered points and the Colonels led 26-20. The Panthers cut the lead to three near the end of the half, but a pair of free throws by junior Mary Stough (Louisville, Ky.) made it a 30-25 game at the half.

Senior Jenna Mire (Knoxville, Tenn.) nailed a three-pointer and junior Paige Baechle (Gallatin, Tenn.) hit a lay-up to push the lead to 35-25 early in the second half. 

Centre led 41-31 with 13:13 to play, but Birmingham Southern scored nine straight points to pull within 41-40.

The Colonels continued to hold a slim lead until Alex Adams made a lay-up with 1:54 on the clock to give the Panthers a 59-58 lead. Sophomore Hillary Moore (Hyden, Ky.) answered with a lay-up to put Centre back in front, but Adams was fouled with nine seconds left and made both free throws for a one-point lead.

Following a missed lay-up, Benham grabbed the rebound and was fouled with 0:00.2 remaining. After missing the front end, the senior hit the second shot and the game went to overtime.

The extra period was all Centre as Benham, Baechle and Moore hit consecutive shots for a 67-61 lead. Birmingham Southern got within four, but would get no closer as the Colonels closed out the game for the seven-point victory.

Baechle paced Centre with 21 points and a game-high 17 rebounds. She also had five assists and five steals in 42 minutes of action. Benham finished with 15 points, Mire with 11 and Guy scored a season-high 10 points off the bench.

Adams led the Panthers with a game-high 28 points to go along with eight rebounds. Caroline King notched 13 points, seven rebounds and three steals and Elizabeth Bromirski chipped in 10 points and five rebounds.

The Colonels will next host Millsaps College Sunday, Feb. 10. The game will be the final regular-season home game and will be part of Senior Day. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. in Alumni Gymnasium.