OSAGE BEACH - The St. Elizabeth Lady Hornets nearly erased a 14-point second-half deficit, but the Eldon Lady Mustangs were able to hang on Monday for a 58-54 victory in pool play of the Osage Tournament.
St. Elizabeth jumped out to a 7-0 lead, but Eldon went ahead 17-14 by the end of the first quarter. The Lady Mustangs continued to lead 27-21 at halftime.
Eldon continued to lead 47-40 heading into the fourth quarter. St. Elizabeth closed the gap to two points and had a chance to tie the game in the final minute, but Eldon's Jaci Mueller made 1-of-2 free throws with three second left to seal the win for the Lady Mustangs.
Harley Engelmeyer led the Lady Hornets with a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds. Ella Lucas finished with 11 points.
Haley Henderson scored a game-high 26 points for the Lady Mustangs and Sydney Halderman added 10 points.
St. Elizabeth (7-6), the No. 5 seed, will play top-seeded Richland at 5 p.m. today to finish pool play.
Eldon (6-7), the No. 4 seed, faces Richland at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.