ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – Missouri S&T's women's basketball team got out to a hot start Wednesday night against one of the two remaining undefeated teams in Great Lakes Valley Conference play, but Lewis warmed up just as the Miners were cooling down from the field and went on defeat S&T 92-66 at Neil Carey Arena.
The Miners got out of the gate by scoring the first seven points of the contest, getting baskets from
Franchesca Metz (Downers Grove, IL/Nazareth Academy), a three-pointer from
Eryn Puett (Columbia, MO/Rock Bridge) and one from
Katelynne Roberts (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville) before the Flyers (7-5, 6-0 GLVC) got on the scoreboard for the first time at the 6:13 mark on a basket by Grace Hilber.
S&T led 12-4 following a three-pointer by
Addyson Kent (North Vernon, IN/Jennings County) with 5:14 to go in the quarter and maintained the lead throughout the first period, going 10-of-15 from the field and taking a 25-18 lead following a lay-in by
Morgan Luebbering (Jefferson Ciy, MO/Fatima) in the final seconds of the quarter.
But as hot as the Miners (3-11, 0-6 GLVC) were in the first quarter, the Flyers turned the tide after the break. Following two free throws by Luebbering to re-establish its seven-point advantage, Lewis rattled off seven straight points to even the score and then took its first lead of the game at 29-28 on a lay-up by Taylor Gugliuzza at the 4:24 mark.
Kent drained a three on the Miners' next trip down the floor to put the Miners back in front, then after Lewis scored five points in succession to retake the lead, S&T tied it up on a Metz three-pointer. However, the Flyers got the lead back before halftime on a Cierra McNamee basket in the final 30 seconds of the half to take a two-point lead to the locker room.
The Flyers broke the game open in the third quarter, scoring eight of the first 10 points of the period and taking a 17-point lead by the end of the quarter as they went 11-of-15 from the field during that span, while S&T hit on just four of its 16 field goal attempts. Lewis would then outscore S&T 28-19 in the fourth quarter.
Roberts posted her fifth double-double of the season with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Metz had a season-high 14 points for S&T. Kent also reached double figures for the Miners with 11 points, which included a trio of three-point field goals.
Hilber had a game-high 22 points to lead four Flyers in double figures, as Lewis shot 55.4 percent for the game after making only six of its 16 shots in the opening period. The win also moved the Flyers into sole possession of first place in the GLVC standings.
The Miners will host McKendree – who fell from the unbeaten ranks in conference play Wednesday with a loss at home to Upper Iowa – on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Gibson Arena.
