JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The No.1 seed Eastern Kentucky University women's basketball team was upset in the first round of the 2026 Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament falling to No. 8 seed Austin Peay by a score of 45-41 on Thursday afternoon at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena.
 
With the loss, EKU falls to 24-8 on the season and has its hopes of a conference tournament championship halted.
 
The Colonels were led with 10 points from freshman guard Kenleigh Woods, who joined two other EKU players in sophomore guard Liz Freihofer and senior guard Althea Kara Angeles playing all 40 minutes in the game.
 
EKU had its lowest scoring effort of the season amassing 41 points while shooting 29 percent (15-for-51) from the floor, 12 percent (3-for-24) from beyond the arch, and only making eight free throws.
 
Austin Peay (18-12) advances to the ASUN semifinals and will play the winner of No. 4 seed Stetson or No. 5 seed FGCU on March 7. The Governors were led by Anovia Sheals who scored 19 points.
 
EKU set the tone early behind Woods, who drilled a 3-pointer on the opening possession, and the Colonels built a quick cushion with finishes from Kailani Lindsey and Joseana Vaz. Austin Peay found points at the rim from Branton and Sheals, but EKU's defense held the Governors to 4-for-17 shooting in the period as the Colonels carried a nine-point, 17-8, advantage into the second quarter.
 
Austin Peay responded in the second behind Sheals' downhill attacks and Lameria Thomas' work on the offensive glass, trimming the deficit with second-chance opportunities. EKU's offense stalled for long stretches and the Colonels turned it over four times in the quarter, allowing the Governors to close within four, 25-21, at the break despite a key 3-pointer from Ndidiamaka Ndukwe late in the half.
 
The Governors seized control in the third, holding EKU to just six points while grabbing their first lead of the afternoon, 35-31. Jim'Miyah Branton scored twice inside to spark the surge, and Sheals and Jade Rucker helped Austin Peay finish the quarter on top as EKU missed from deep and committed five turnovers in the period.
 
EKU pushed back in the fourth with a bucket from Ndukwe and late free throws from Freihofer, but Austin Peay closed the game at the line and won 45-41. Sheals delivered the decisive points in the final minute, and the Governors' defense turned EKU away on its last possessions to seal the upset.