KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Missouri S&T women's basketball team continued play in the Great Lakes Valley Conference play with a tough loss to Rockhurst 72-67 Thursday evening in Mason-Halpin Field House.
After trailing by 10 after the opening period, the Miners (10-10, 6-6 GLVC) came back to take the lead by halftime and still led heading into the fourth quarter. However, S&T was outscored 25-19 in the fourth quarter as the Hawks took the lead with 3:24 to play and hit two key baskets down the stretch to hold off the Miners.
The Hawks started the contest by scoring the first five points before a
Michaela Davis (Keokuk, Iowa/Keokuk) jumper got S&T on the board. S&T and Rockhurst exchanged baskets until the 6:16 mark when the Hawks made another 5-0 run to take a nine-point lead, then built it to 14 a short time later. Rockhurst led by 10 when the period ended, but the Miner defense forced the Hawks into a major scoring drought in the second quarter that allowed it to erase the lead.
The Miners held Rockhurst to one-of-16 shooting in the quarter as they started cutting into the margin. S&T cut the deficit to six after a free throw by Finley, then after a Molly Hummel scored the final point for Rockhurst in the period after splitting a pair from the free-throw line, the Miners closed the half on a 9-0 run and took their first lead when
Laura Rodriguez (Gran Canaria, Spain/Baloncesto Torrelodones) made two free throws in the final minute before halftime.
After Rockhurst was able to tie the game at 31-31 on its first possession in the second half on a jumper by Keegan Sullivan, the teams exchanged baskets until
Kristen Keys (St. Louis, MO/Westminster Christian Academy) knocked down a jump that broke the tie. The Miners got four straight points from
Alex Kerr (St. Louis, MO/St. Joseph's Academy) midway through the quarter to allow the Miners to build its largest lead of the game of six. However, the Hawks were able to cut the lead back to one before the quarter ended.
The Hawks continued their run into the final quarter as they scored on back-to-back possessions to increase the lead to three, but Rodriguez tied the game at 51-51 with a three-point field goal. The Hawks responded with five straight points to regain the lead, only to see the Miners rally back to go in front when Rodriguez broke the tie with two free throws at the 4:22 mark.
Rockhurst got the lead back when Rebeca Garcia made two at the line, then after the teams swapped baskets, the Hawks went up by three on a lay-in by Ali Kamies. With the Miners down by three with 1:21 left, Kamies stole the inbounds pass and scored to extend the lead to five, then the Hawks answered a Davis lay-up when Macie Conway hit a long jumper to make it a five-point game again with 49 seconds to go.
The Miners had three players finish in double-figures, led by Rodriguez with 22 points and Kerr, who secured her 30th-career double-double, with 18 points while hauling down a career-high 17 rebounds. Davis was the other double-figure scorer with 14 points while shooting six-of-seven from the field.
Anna Finley (Owensville, MO/Owensville) contributed nine points while dishing-out a team high four assists.
As a team, S&T outrebounded the Hawks 40-38.
The Hawks (9-10, 4-7 GLVC) also had three players finish in double figures, led by Hummel with 17 points. Sullivan and Kamies each contributed 14 points and Sullivan brought down a team-high 10 rebounds while adding three assists.
The Miners will continue Great Lakes Valley Conference play by hosting William Jewell Saturday afternoon in Gibson Arena to kick off a four-game homestand. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
