Joplin, Mo. – The Missouri Southern Women's Basketball hosted the Riverhawks of Northeastern State University in the final conference matchup of 2024. A strong performance from the Lions in the first half was enough to fight off a Riverhawks surge in the final two quarters as the Lions won 75-71.
Missouri Southern (9-5, 2-1 MIAA) vs. Northeastern State (5-5, 1-2 MIAA)
Quarter 1: Missouri Southern 15 | Northeastern State 13
Kennady Roach produced seven of the Lions' 11 points in the first five minutes of play as the Riverhawks were held to six points. Despite an early lead, neither team could stack a run as the quarter came to a close with a score of 15-13 in favor of the Lions.
Quarter 2: Missouri Southern 35 | Northeastern State 27
The Lions began the second quarter with a 10-2 run (
Ryan Franklin, three points;
Veonce Powell, three points;
Kaitlin Hunnicutt, two points; and
Kennady Roach, two points) to grow their lead to 25-15 with 6:21 remaining in the first half. The Riverhawks would cut their deficit with a 6-0 run in the final two and a half minutes to five points, but a three-pointer from
Morgan Meyers at the halftime buzzer gave the Lions a 35-27 lead heading into the locker room.
Quarter 3: Missouri Southern 51 | Northeastern State 46
Ryan Franklin opened the third quarter with six of the Lions' eight total points in the first three and a half minutes to grow the Lions' lead to 43-31 with 6:38 remaining in the quarter. The Riverhawks would respond, returning with a 12-4 run to cut the Lions' lead to 47-42 with three minutes remaining. Both teams would score four points before the third quarter came to a close with a score of 51-46.
Quarter 4: Missouri Southern 75 | Northeastern State 71
After an opening three from the Riverhawks,
Mackenzie Hart (layup),
Kennady Roach (layup), and
Kaitlin Hunnicutt (three-pointer) put together a 7-0 run for the Lions to grow their lead to 58-49 with 7:30 remaining in the game. Both teams traded baskets over the next minute and a half, but the Riverhawks would follow with a 9-0 run late in the game to give them their first lead since the opening minutes of the first quarter (63-62, 4:19 remaining). After each team traded baskets over the following two minutes, Roach and
Morgan Meyers combined for a 5-0 run to regain a 71-67 lead with 1:29 remaining. With the Riverhawks being forced to foul to stop the clock, the Lions would knock down four clutch free throws to hold their lead as the buzzer sounded, ending the game in a victory for the Lions (75-71).
Missouri Southern Leaders:
Points: Kennady Roach - 23
Rebounds: Kennady Roach - 6
Assists: Mackenzie Hart - 7
Steals: Mackenzie Hart - 3
Blocks: n/a
Northeastern State Leaders:
Points: Courtney Kee - 19
Rebounds: Courtney Lee, Snowda Watie - 9
Assists: Snowda Watie - 3
Steals: Deyanna Douglas - 3
Blocks: Courtney Lee, Emily Weathers - 1
Up Next:
The Lions will host their final non-conference game of the season against the Bulldogs of Southwest Oklahoma State University on Saturday, December 21, at 3:30 PM in Leggett & Platt Athletic Center.
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