ROLLA, Mo. - The Missouri S&T women's basketball team began its four-game homestand Saturday with a 79-68 victory over William Jewell in Gibson Arena, as the Miners held off the pesky Cardinals in the second half.

S&T (11-10, 7-6 GLVC) led at the break 50-37, then held the Cardinals to just 38 percent shooting in the second half to move back above the .500 mark in Great Lakes Valley Conference play and improve to 6-2 in Gibson Arena.
 
After the teams exchanged baskets early in the contest, the Cardinals got hot from three-point range to take as much as a 10-point lead in the opening period. Back-to-back three point baskets by Chloe Frank and Bree Shannon gave Jewell an 11-5 lead, then pushed the margin into double figures with a 9-0 run that was snapped on a Katelynne Roberts (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville) layup. That basket by Roberts turned the tide, as S&T started a 14-3 run – with Laura Rodriguez (Gran Canaria, Spain/Baloncesto Torrelodones) scoring eight of her 20 points in that stretch – to allow the Miners to take a 25-24 advantage after the first quarter. 
 
The margin remained close through the early stages of the second quarter, until S&T made a 5-0 run on baskets from Alex Kerr (St. Louis, MO/St. Joseph's Academy) and a three-pointer by Rodriguez to increase their lead lead to six. On the next two S&T possessions, S&T scored five straight points on a Rodriguez driving layup and a conventional three-point play by Kerr to increase the lead to nine.

William Jewell was able to cut the deficit to seven at 42-35 after a Ayden Shannon layup, but the Miners responded with back-to-back layups from Chorus Davis (Kansas City, MO/Lincoln College Prep) and Kerr to increase the lead to double digits and eventually took a 50-37 lead to the break. 
 
The Miners started the second half by scoring five of the first seven points to increase their lead to 16. However, the Cardinals answered with five straight points that was snapped on a Rodriguez driving layup, which started a 6-0 S&T run. S&T led 67-54 heading into the fourth quarter and then added to that lead when Kristen Keys (St. Louis, MO/Westminster Christian Academy) made a layup that increased the lead 30 seconds into the final period.

William Jewell responded with a 7-0 run that to cut the margin to eight and over the final four minutes, trimmed the deficit to eight on three separate occasions and then down to seven. The Miners finished the game by making seven of their eight free throw attempts down the stretch to stem the Cardinals' late rally.  
 
The Miners had three players finish in double figures, led by Kerr with 22 points while also hauling down team-high 14 rebounds for her 11th double-double of the season. Laura Rodriguez (Gran Canaria, Spain/Baloncesto Torrelodones) contributed 20 points while shooting three-of-seven from behind the arc – moving past Jennifer Cordes into fourth place on the all-time scoring list at S&T in the process – while Anna Finley (Owensville, MO/Owensville) finished with 10 points. On the defensive side, Kerr and Michaela Davis (Keokuk, Iowa/Keokuk) led S&T with three steals each as Kerr and Keys each recorded a block.
 
As a team, S&T shot 42.4 percent from the field while forcing 18 William Jewell turnovers. 
 
The Cardinals were led in scoring by Bree Shannon with 19 points and Chloe Frank with 10. Shannon, Frank, Ayden Shannon and Kate Hillyer all netted at least two three point field goals for William Jewell, who had eight treys in the contest.
 
The Miners will continue their homestand Thursday as they take on second-ranked Drury at 5:30 p.m in Gibson Arena.
 
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