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SEARCY – The Harding women's basketball team look to keep the momentum going Saturday as they face  #7 Arkansas Tech in the semifinals of the Gulf South Conference Tournament at the DeSoto Civic Center in Southaven, Miss., at 12:30 p.m. It is the first time in Harding history the Lady Bisons have advanced to the semifinals.

LAST TIME: The game on Saturday will be the third time the two teams have met this season. The Golden Suns walked away with both victories during the regular season.  In Russellville, Ark., Arkansas Tech won by one point, 62-61. It was a different story in Searcy as Harding fell 95-68. In both games, Sierra Rollins averaged 17.5 points per game and six rebounds. Senior Stacey Owens wasn't far behind averaging 17.0 points per game and 6.5 rebounds. For Arkansas Tech in both games, Jessica Weatherford averaged 16.5 points per game, 7.5 rebounds per game and three blocks per game. Arkansas Tech shot over 50 percent in both games.

COACHES: Harding is coached by Tim Kirby, who enters his fifth season at the helm of the Lady Bisons. Kirby has an 86-56 career record. Kirby took over the Lady Bison program before the 2005-06 season after serving 12 seasons as the Harding's men's basketball assistant.

Arkansas Tech is coached by Dave Wilbers, who enters his third season as head coach of the Golden Suns. Wilbers has compiled a 71-17 overall record.

THE LADY BISONS: Harding (17-11) is coming off a 73-66 win over North Alabama in the opening round of the GSC Tournament. Owens poured in a career-high 31 points in the game, hitting four 3-pointers and went 9-of-11 from the free-throw line.

The Lady Bisons are averaging 12.7 points off second chance opportunities. Harding averages 13.3 offensive rebounds a game, ranking seventh in the GSC. St. Clair leads the Lady Bisons in rebounds, averaging 5.8 a game. Three are offensive rebounds, ranking fourth in the GSC.

Rollins is shooting 50.0 percent from the field to lead the Lady Bisons. She has really come on strong during conference play, averaging 13.3 points and 6.6 rebounds. Nine times this season she has ended in double-figure scoring in GSC play. Rollins ranks second on the team in rebounds, averaging 5.5 a game.

The Lady Bisons are averaging 11.9 steals per game, ranking them second in the GSC and 26th in the NCAA. St. Clair leads the GSC in steals per game with an average of 3.1.

Harding is averaging 31.1 points in the paint this season. The Lady Bisons have had more than 20 points in a game in the paint all but one time this season. Against Henderson State, Harding only had 18 points in the paint.

After Owens career-high last game she leads the Lady Bisons in scoring, averaging 14.3 points per game.  St. Clair isn't far behind her averaging 13.9 points per game. Both players were named All-GSC Second team earlier this past week.

THE GOLDEN SUNS: Arkansas Tech (26-2) is coming off an 87-64 win over West Florida in the opening round of the GSC Tournament. Natalia Santos had 28 points in the game, hitting 11-of-15 from the field. She also had eight rebounds in the game.

Arkansas Tech leads the GSC in scoring offense, averaging 80.6 points per game which ranks them sixth in NCAA Division II. The Golden Suns are second in the GSC in scoring margin. They average 19.5 more points than their opponents, which also ranks them ninth in the NCAA Division II. Arkansas Tech leads the GSC in field goal percentage, averaging 48.1 percent from the field this season, ranking them sixth in NCAA Division II. The Golden Suns average 36.5 percent from behind the three-point line, ranking them first in the GSC and 20th in NCAA Division II. Their defense is one of the best in the GSC as well, holding their opponents to shooting an average of 35.3 percent from the field, ranking them first in the GSC. They also lead the GSC in assists per game (19.6) and steals per game (13.0).

Arkansas Tech has five players that shot over 50 percent from the field.

The Golden Suns are led by Vining, who averages 18.5 points per game and a team high 3.8 assists per game. Natalia Santos averages 15.9 points per game and leads ATU on the boards averaging 7.7 rebounds per game. Jessica Weatherford also averages double-figures with 11.5  points per game and 5.7 rebounds per game.

The SERIES: Arkansas Tech leads the series, 47-2. It is the first time the teams have met in the postseason. Last time the Lady Bisons defeated the Golden Suns was 2/14/09 in Searcy.