Missouri Western women fend off UCO
Jan. 22—Missouri Western had six players score in double figures and fended off a second-half rally by Central Oklahoma, winning 93-88 Saturday at Hamilton Field House in Edmond, Oklahoma.
It was the first weekend road trip for the Griffons (14-3, 8-3 MIAA). They had played just three road games, and only one in the MIAA, prior to Thursday's win at Newman.
Missouri Western stormed out to a 27-18 lead at the end of the first behind an 11-for-17 mark from the field. Bri Budgetts sank two 3-pointers while Jaelyn Haggard added one of her own as the two combined for 15 points.
A Budgetts 3 kickstarted a 7-0 run in the second, forcing a UCO timeout with a 34-18 lead. UCO (11-8, 7-6) cut the deficit to eight, but 3s by Haggard and Mary Fultz in the final minute made for a 49-26 halftime edge.
The lead reached 19 three minutes into the second half thanks to a 9-0 run, but UCO stormed right back with an 11-0 spurt over the next two minutes. Western was held without a basket the final 3:58 of the third and led 69-62.
The deficit was cut to two when the teams traded blows over the last two minutes. Corbyn Cunningham answered with a layup before UCO's Caley Young came back with one of her own. Jordan Cunningham then hit an open 3 before Kelsey Johnson's layup with 1:13 left, leaving Western up 84-81.
A Haggard floater was then followed by a Connie Clarke steal and layup, and four free throws from Jordan Cunningham helped ice the game.
Corbyn Cunningham led Western with 16 points and eight rebounds. Budgetts added 15 points, and Haggard (14) and Alyssa Bonilla (12) led the way toward 39 bench points. Jordan Cunningham tallied 11 points and six rebounds while Clarke added 10 and six.
Fultz added seven points and five boards in 17 minutes.
Johnson, who leads the MIAA in scoring, led UCO with 38 points on 16-of-23 shooting and nine rebounds. Brooke Rayner and Aliyah Llanusa each scored 18, and only five players scored for UCO.
With losses by Fort Hays State and Nebraska-Kearney over the weekend, the Griffons are just one game back of first in the MIAA in the loss column. Both teams are 10-2 in the MIAA.
Missouri Western travels to Central Missouri (14-6, 10-3) at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Brandon Zenner can be reached at brandon.zenner@newspressnow.com. Follow him on Twitter: @NPNowZenner.
