Maryville, Mo. – The Missouri Southern Women's Basketball team traveled to take on the Northwest Missouri State University Bearcats on Thursday, February 13, in a conference matchup. Missouri Southern battled in a back-and-forth contest, taking multiple leads behind key performances from
Ryan Franklin,
Kennady Roach,
Grace Frazier, and
Veonce Powell. The Lions held the lead heading into the fourth inning, and the Bearcats took a final lead and held on for the win.
Missouri Southern (16-10,8-6 MIAA) vs. Northwest Missouri State (12-12,5-9 MIAA)
Quarter 1: Missouri Southern 16 | Northwest Missouri State 19
Ryan Franklin opened the scoring with the first basket of the night. Northwest Missouri State responded with a series of buckets to take an early 8-4 lead.
Reese Webb closed the gap with a layup, cutting the deficit to two points with 7:22 left in the first quarter. Both teams traded baskets in a hard-fought battle, but the Bearcats pulled ahead, extending their lead to 17-10 with 4:08 remaining.
Kennady Roach and
Veonce Powell combined for six key points to bring the score to 19-16 as the quarter came to a close.
Quarter 2: Missouri Southern 31 | Northwest Missouri State 32
Northwest Missouri State opened the quarter with back-to-back baskets, but
Ryan Franklin halted their momentum with a jumper, bringing the score to 28-23 with 8:41 remaining.
Kennady Roach followed with a jumper, and
Reese Webb added a free throw to cut the deficit to two points with 6:11 on the clock.
Morgan Meyers stepped up with a jumper and sank two free throws to bring the Lions within one point at 28-27 with 4:02 left.
Makenna Yokley knocked down back-to-back jumpers, tying the game at 29-29 with 2:04 remaining.
Veonce Powell closed the second quarter with a jumper, sending the Southern into halftime down by one point, 31-30.
Quarter 3: Missouri Southern 45 | Northwest Missouri State 44
The Lions took the lead as
Kennady Roach drained a three-pointer, making it 34-32.
Ryan Franklin followed with a hook shot to extend the advantage to 36-34. Both teams traded baskets before
Grace Frazier tied the game at 38-38 with 3:26 remaining. Moments later, Frazier hit another three-pointer, giving Southern a 41-40 lead.
Makenna Yokley scored four straight points, pushing the Lions' lead to 45-40 with 1:34 left in the quarter. Southern carried a 45-44 advantage into the final quarter.
Quarter 4: Missouri Southern 54 | Northwest Missouri State 62
Mackenzie Hart extended the Lions' lead with a layup. The Bearcats responded with a three-pointer and a jumper, reclaiming the lead at 49-47.
Veonce Powell answered with a layup and a jumper, swinging the advantage back to Southern at 51-49. The teams continued exchanging baskets and trading the lead in a tightly contested battle. With 3:19 remaining, Northwest Missouri State edged ahead, 56-54, and secured the win.
Missouri Southern Leaders:
Points: Ryan Franklin /
Makenna Yokley – 10
Rebounds: Reese Webb - 8
Assists: Grace Frazier - 4
Steals: Ryan Franklin /
Veonce Powell - 2
Blocks: -
Northwest Missouri State Leaders:
Points: Molly Hartnett - 24
Rebounds: Molly Hartnett - 9
Assists: Molly Hartnett - 5
Steals: Kelsey Fields - 2
Blocks: -
Up Next:
The Lions will be on the road on Saturday, February 15, when they take on the Missouri Western State University Griffons in a conference matchup. Tip-off is set for 1:30 PM in St. Joseph, Mo., at the MWSU Fieldhouse.
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