KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Destiny Cozart scored 20 points and added seven rebounds, but the Missouri Southern State University women's basketball team dropped its MIAA Tournament opening-round game today inside historic Municipal Auditorium, as the No. 9 seeded Lions lost, 66-52, to the No. 8 seeded Washburn.

The Lions (10-18), opened the game with a 7-2 run that included five points from Cozart who had five of the seven points. After Washburn went on a run of its own, Southern finished the quarter on an 8-1 run and took a 15-14 lead with Zoe Campbell scoring six points down the final stretch.

The second quarter was a back-and-forth affair with the Lions staying within striking distance of the Ichabods (18-11) before going into halftime, trailing 30-21.

The third quarter saw the Lions trail by as many as 12 points but an 11-0 run closed the gap to just one point, 35-34 with five minutes left on the clock. Southern maintained the momentum as they outscored Washburn 22-15 in the quarter to trail by two, 45-43 after three.

Washburn controlled the fourth to put the game away. 

The Lions were paced by Cozart who had 20 points and five steals in the game. Zoe Campbell had 10 points and two blocks on the game to improve her Southern career record to 114 and her season record to 62. Madi Stokes finished with four points and nine rebounds in the game, while Amber Buch h ad a team-high four assists. 

Southern returns eight players from this year's roster including eight of the teams' top-ten scorers and six players that saw significant starts and minutes this season.