The Cowgirls missed a chance to even their overall record and jump back Saturday inside the Legacy Center.

McNeese State could not extend their winning streak to three, falling to Nicholls 60-47 in a Southland Conference match.

After two straight road victories, the Cowgirls had hoped they had turned the corner on their season, but offensive struggles spelled doom to the Colonels.

The loss dropped McNeese to 7-9, 2-3 while Nicholls improved to 10-5, 3-3.

“We had two good wins on the road, and we came out here, and you could see right away we didn’t have it,” said McNeese head coach Lynn Kennedy. “We got tentative, we got passive.

“We came home and we have to have more energy than that.”

Things turned at the end of the first quarter when Jesslynn Jalomo threw up a desperation heave as time was about to expire. Her shot somehow found nothing but net as the buzzer sounded, giving Nicholls a 17-14 lead.

That kicked off a big run for the Colonels to start the second. At one point, they would score 15 straight, taking a 36-18 lead before Paris Guillory stopped the streak with a 3-pointer with 57 seconds left before half. 

The Colonels took a 36-21 lead into the break. 

“We can’t give up a 15-0 run and expect to win a game,” said Kennedy. “We have been doing that all year. We have to be better.”

Kennedy seemed surprised by the game, noting the up-and-down play of his team this season. 

“You look at the two previous games and I think we have a championship team,” he said. “Tonight, I don’t know if we are a tournament team.”

McNeese made just three field goals in the second quarter while getting outscored 19-7. 

“We got to shoot the ball better than that,” said Kennedy. “We were able to beat the press, but we gotta keep attacking. We have to make them pay.”

McNeese made a min-run in the middle of the third when Mireia Yespes finished off a 3-point play to cut the lead to 40-29. But the Colonels scored seven of the quarter’s last nine points to restore the lead to 47-31. 

The Cowgirls could only get as close as 10 in the fourth, that coming with just 40 seconds remaining.

Guillory led McNeese with 12 points, while Yespes had 11 and eight rebounds. Curtis finished with 13 for the Colonels to lead all scorers.

When asked if the loss said more about his team or the opponents, Kennedy simply responded: “this is about us”.

Lake Arthur product Deonna Brister came off the bench to finish with 12 for Nicholls.

McNeese will return home to play Stephen F. Austin Thursday at 6 p.m. in the Legacy Center.