ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Back on the road for the second time in 2022, the Missouri S&T women's basketball team took the court at the Mark Twain Center Saturday for a matchup against Missouri-St. Louis. The Miners (4-7, 1-4) played the home team close in the early going, but the Tritons (8-1, 4-0) gradually pulled away over the balance of the game, winning 74-39.
 
UMSL scored first an opened the game on a 9-2 run before Laura Rodriguez (Gran Canaria, Spain/Baloncesto Torrelodones) connected on a triple and Marta Durk (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon Township) made a layup to get S&T within two at 9-7. Alex Kerr (St. Louis, Mo./St. Joseph's Academy) tied things at 9-9 on S&T's next trip down the floor but the tie would be short-lived as the Tritons re-established the lead with a 6-0 run over the next two minutes. The Green & Gold struggled from the field in the final minutes of the period, allowing Missouri-St. Louis to open up a 12-point lead in the final minute before Michaela Davis (Keokuk, Iowa/Keokuk) scored on a layup with 16 seconds left to make it 22-12.
 
After trading baskets to open the second quarter, the Tritons pushed their lead to 21 at 35-14 over the next seven minutes before Jada Lindesmith (Cincinnati, Ohio/Lutheran) hit a jumper with 2:49 to go. UMSL then closed the quarter with a 9-0 run to lead 44-16 at the intermission.
 
The first five points of the second half went to UMSL before Kerr went on a 4-0 run of her own to make it 49-21 with 7:12 on the clock. Missouri-St. Louis continued their hot-shooting as the quarter elapsed and led 60-27 before Rodriguez beat the buzzer with a layup to make it 60-29 after 30 minutes.
 
Both teams emptied their benches and played out the stretch in the final quarter. S&T's Addyson Kent (North Vernon, IN/Jennings County) connected on a three-pointer with 3:29 to go and was joined in the fourth-quarter scoring column by Kerr, Rodriguez, Katelynne Roberts (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville) and Michaela Davis (Keokuk, Iowa/Keokuk).
 
Kerr and Rodriguez both finished with a team-high 11 points, with the former pulling down four rebounds and the latter recording two rebounds, a steal and an assist. Kent finished with five points on 2-3 shooting.
 
The Miners will next be in action Thursday evening at Gibson Arena against Truman State, with tip-off set for 5:30 P.M.