The Salukis’ hopes of starting a winning streak were dashed Saturday evening after they fell to Southern Mississippi, 55-48.

SIU, now 1-6, was propelled into Hattiesburg, Miss., after routing Saint Louis at the SIU Arena last Tuesday, its first victory of the season.

But the chance for a second straight win eluded the Salukis largely because of the Golden Eagles’ 47 percent shooting from the field and SIU’s turnover woes.

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Both teams had trouble holding onto the ball, coughing it up a combined total of 14 times in the first 10 minutes. In fact, Southern Mississippi turned the ball over three times in its first four possessions.

As a result, the Salukis took a quick 4-2 lead after freshman Elyse Morris made a layup a little more than a minute into the half. The Golden Eagles capitalized on Saluki turnovers too, though, and a back-and-forth battle defined the first half.

Senior guard Danette Jones was held scoreless in the first 20 minutes but was able to rely on Daphney Desamours and Amy Hayden to drop some shots.

“I didn’t do a very good job of getting open and using my teammates,” Jones said.

But Desamours and Hayden, a senior and junior respectively, helped to pick up the slack. Desamours racked up six first-half points despite not starting, and Hayden pitched in eight, shooting 4-of-9 from the field.

After trading baskets, Southern Mississippi was able to put together a 6-2 run in the final minutes of the half to take a 27-22 lead.

Jones found the bottom of the basket at the start of the second half, igniting a 6-0 Saluki run with her first field goal of the night. Desamours and senior Wendy Goodman also scored during the stretch to give SIU its first lead, 28-27, since the opening minutes of the game.

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But turnovers and an uncharitable free throw line began to plague the Salukis and head coach Dana Eikenberg. SIU turned the ball over eight times in the second half and shot only 2-of-7 from the charity stripe.

“The team was out of sync,” Eikenberg said. “Free throws are definitely an Achilles’ heel. We hope it’s a correctable mistake.”

While the Salukis had trouble knocking down their free throws, Southern Mississippi fared considerably better on its end of the court.

The Golden Eagles touched the free throw line 13 times in the game, draining eight, and doing it all in the second half. On the back of four straight free throws, Southern Mississippi took a 34-28 lead with a little more 13 minutes left in the game.

“You gotta hit them, they’re free,” said Jones about the free throws. “It’s something very important in winning a ballgame.”

The Golden Eagles continued to take advantage of fouls and widened their lead to 53-45, with only a minute remaining in the game. Hayden sank a three-pointer seconds later, but it was too little, too late.

Eikenberg said she felt as if the team regressed a bit Saturday, but was pleased with Hayden’s 15-point performance.

Saturday marked Hayden’s third consecutive game in double digits, and the second straight game in which she has led SIU’s offensive charge. Hayden ended up shooting 6-of-15 with one three-pointer and the Salukis’ only successful pair of free throws.

“Amy is taking the things we’re really trying to focus on, and she has found success,” Eikenberg said. “We just need to find an answer to our inside game.”