Kayla Cleaveland has been a breakout star for Georgia Southern this season, often serving as a potent scoring threat to compliment an already impressive group of older teammates.

Facing Southern Miss Wednesday night at the Jack and Ruth Ann Hill Convocation center, Cleaveland didn't quite have her shooter's touch and managed just three points.

But sometimes the quality counts much more than the quantity. 

Southern Miss mounted a furious rally to erase a 15-point GS lead late in the third quarter to pull even in the final minute of play. But Cleaveland found herself wide open on the right wing and launched a high-arching shot that found nothing but net with 6 seconds to play.

A desperation heave by the Golden Eagles fell short and the freshman's only points of the night proved to be the dagger in a 70-67 victory.

With the win, the Eagles improve to 16-5 overall. More importantly, they stand at 9-2 in Sun Belt Conference play and sit in second place in the standings with just a month remaining in the regular season. 

Kishyah Anderson paced Georgia Southern for most of the night, lighting up Southern Miss for 31 points and matching the Golden Eagles shot for shot as both offenses caught fire in the closing minutes of play. 

Destiny Garrett added 16 for Georgia Southern and was the only other Eagle to hit double-digit scoring on the night. 

Wednesday's win continues one of the more unlikely seasons in recent history for the women's squad. Picked to finish 10th in the 14-team league before the season started, the Eagles have not only turned heads, but have played with enough poise and consistency to quiet any thoughts that this is a team that will eventually come back down to earth. 

The stage is now set for a first place showdown as GS hosts league-leading Arkansas State Saturday at 2 p.m. A win would put the Eagles atop the Sun Belt entering the final month of play.