ROLLA, MO — Missouri S&T battled for four quarters Tuesday night inside Gibson Arena, trimming a double-digit deficit to single digits in the first half before ultimately falling 66-45 against Illinois Springfield. Macy Marraccini (Broken Arrow, OK/Broken Arrow) led the Miners in scoring, putting up a career-high 12.
The Miners came out aggressive in the opening quarter, attacking the paint and leading 4-3 after buckets by Norah Gum (Waterloo, IL/Waterloo) and Kiarra Kilgore (Galesburg, IL/Galesburg). A pair of three-pointers from the Prairie Stars started a 13-3 run that gave them a nine-point lead. Buckets by Gum and Anna Finley (Owensville, MO/Owensville) got the Miners offense kickstarted again, ending the opening quarter with UIS up 18-11.
The second quarter proved to be the tightest of the game, with the Miners scoring 8 to UIS' 10. S&T only gave up four field goals in the second, getting 7 turnovers and 4 blocks off of the visitors, leading to the team trailing 28-19 at halftime.
After a slow start from both teams in the third quarter, the Prairie Stars used a 9-2 run to build a 17-point lead at 41-24. S&T free throws along with a Marraccini three got the Miners offense rolling again, but UIS continued to scoring, taking the game into the fourth with the Miners trailing 49-33.
A steal by Ava Casper (Bixby, OK/Holland Hall) led to a fastbreak layup for Marraccini to cut the Miners deficit to 14 early in the fourth. UIS' Kayla Rice had a strong fourth quarter, hitting a pair of threes and scoring eight to help the Prairie Stars extend their lead to claim a 66-45 victory in Gibson.
Marraccini's 12 points led the team and tied with Megan Aulbert (Lake St. Louis, MO/Lutheran) for the most rebounds with eight. Gum was second in points scored, putting up 11 to extend her streak of games in double digit scoring to eight. The team's six blocks tie their season-high, with their only other game with that number coming against William Jewell.
What's Next
The Miners travel to Truman State and William Jewell later this week for their final roadtrip of the season.
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