by Kerry Stadler
Joplin, Mo. – The 10th-ranked Missouri Southern women’s basketball program picked up win number six of the season beating Missouri S&T 73-50 as Kryslyn Jones (Seminole/Creek) led all scorers with 18 points today inside the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center.
Jones scored her 18 points by shooting 8-of-12 from the field, 2-of-3 from three, while adding four assists and three rebounds. Madi Stokes and Amaya Johns both scored 10 points for the Lions (6-0) with Johns grabbing a team-high seven rebounds. Lacy Stokes led the team with seven assists and five steals notching her 10th game of her career with at least five steals.
Missouri S&T (2-4) was led by Anna Finley and Alex Kerr with 14 points each with Kerr coming away with eight rebounds and two blocks. Michaela Davis led the team with nine rebounds with Laura Rodriguez and Davis each dishging out two assists to lead the Miners.
In the first quarter Jones got the scoring started and accounted for the Lions first six points with her jumper at 6:32 putting the Lions ahead 6-5. Southern would pull away in the quarter ending it on a 9-0 run in the last 4:11 for a 18-10 lead heading to the second.
The Miners chipped away at the lead getting as close as four (24-20) with 5:39 left in the first half but a Layne Skiles three on the ensuing possession jumpstarted an 11-4 run by the Lions. Mia Topping with a driving layup ended the run at 1:36 with the lead now 11 points (35-24). Missouri S&T would score twice to cut the lead down to seven at 35-28 for the half.
Southern roared out to a 14-3 run to begin the second half with the lead moving to 18 (49-31) following a Cameron Call three with 5:12 left in the third quarter. The Lions would go on a run to close out the final three minutes of the third with a 7-1 run capped by a pair of free throws by Hailey Grant to send the teams into the fourth quarter at 56-36.
Kaitlin Hunnicutt opened the scoring in the fourth quarter on a three from Jones and capped an 11-4 run by the Lions with a driving layup at 6:04 left in the game. Layne Skiles picked up that assist making it 67-40 for the largest lead of the game. With 5:32 left, Southern subbed out the starters for one last time and played out the rest of the game with the bench unit, Peyton Mosley scored her first collegiate basket at 2:17 on a three from Hailey Grant and added a free throw around 1:29 for the last scoring from the Lions.
As a team the Lions won the battle in field goal percentage (42.6-31.0), three point percentage (42.1-18.8), three’s made (8-3), rebounds (44-39), offensive rebounds (13-12), assists (21-8), steals (9-2), blocks (6-3), bench points (24-8), fast break points (10-9), points off turnovers (12-10), points in the paint (32-26), second chance points (10-7) and had the lead for 37:26 of the game with three ties.
