ROLLA, MO- The Miners will hit the floor once again this Sunday when they play host to the Prairie Stars of Illinois Springfield to kick off their 2021 portion of their schedule.

S&T (1-6, 1-6 GLVC) finished off 2020 at William Jewell where the Cardinals used an offensive packed first quarter that saw the Miners at a 29-14 disadvantage. S&T would lock down their defense in the second quarter to get within reaching distance of Jewell, but Kiara Bradley and the Cardinals offense could not be stopped as they suffered the 73-62 loss.

Laura Rodriguez (Gran Canaria, Spain/Baloncesto Torrelodones) led the way for the Miners with 20 points while Alex Kerr (St. Louis, Mo./St. Joseph's Academy) added in 15 points and grabbed a career high 17 rebounds in the contest.

For the season, Rodriguez and Kerr lead the Miners, offensively with 16.4 and 15.3 points/game, respectively, while senior Marta Durk (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon Township) and sophomore Kristen Keys (St. Louis, MO/Westminster Christian Academy) are contributing 11.3 and 10.8 points/game.

This game will be Illinois Springfield's first game since December 5 due to postponements. In their most previously played game, UIS narrowly surpassed the Saints of Maryville. After taking a seven-point lead heading into halftime, the Prairie Stars defense could not stop the explosive offense of Maryville, and even lost their lead for a time in the third quarter.

It was a back-and-forth game in the fourth with Illinois Springfield coming out on top after two late free-throws made by Lauren Ladowski. The Prairie Stars would take the 58-55 win and collect their second win of the season.

Currently for UIS, Malea Jackson and Lauran Ladowski lead the way, offensively, with 20.0 and 18.3 points/game, respectively while Makenna Fee is leading the team with 8.3 rebounds/game and five total blocks.

The Miners have seen great success against the Prairie Stars, owning the 11-3 all-time in matchups. However, last season when the two teams met up, five Miners scored in double figures, but still suffered the 83-76 loss. UIS would put up 35 points in the fourth quarter to make a late comeback.

The last time the Miners recorded a win over the Prairie Stars, came in the 2018-2019 sea­son when S&T came out with the 83-77 win behind Alex Kerr's (St. Louis, Mo./St. Joseph's Academy) game leading 24 points.