by By Jonah Fabian
Springfield, Mo. – The Missouri Southern Women’s Basketball traveled to Springfield, Missouri on Sunday, December 31, to take on the #18 Lady Panthers of Drury University in a non-conference matchup. A dominant first quarter on both ends set the pace of play for the remainder of the game as the Lions won their fifth straight game this season, beating Drury 80-57. The Lions advance to 8-4 (5-2 MIAA) on the season.
Missouri Southern came out to their hottest start of the season, opening with a 18-0 run on 50 percent shooting from the field. The Lions forced seven Lady Panther turnovers and allowed zero points on eight field goal attempts in the first seven minutes of play. A hot start gave the Lions a commanding 22-10 lead after the first quarter. Mia Topping led the Lions in the first quarter with seven points (3-3 FG) and a steal.
The second quarter was not nearly as one-sided, yet the Lions continued to edge out the Lady Panthers in the scoring column. After the Lady Panthers kept their deficit at 12 points with 7:15 to play, the Lady Lions went on a 14-2 run to take a 44-21 lead with 4:22 remaining in the first half. The Lions went into halftime with a 47-29 lead over the #18 Lady Panthers. Kaitlin Hunnicutt took over as leading scorer for the Lions with nine points (3-4 FG, 2-2 FT), grabbing two rebounds and a steal. Kryslyn Jones had a hot second quarter, gaining all of her eight points (3-7 FG, 2-3 3P) in the second, and also grabbed two rebounds and a steal. Mia Topping and Brandi Hudson both finished the half with seven points.
It was a back-and-forth third quarter that ended with the Lady Panthers narrowing their deficit to 14 points as the Lions continued to lead the Lady Panthers, 61-47. Kaitlin Hunnicutt finished the third quarter with 13 points (5-9 FG, 2-2 FT), three rebounds, two steals and an assist.
The Lions began the fourth quarter with a 9-2 run in the first four minutes of play. The Lady Panthers then returned with a 6-0 run, but it was not enough to overcome the Lions lead as Missouri Southern beat the #18 Lady Panthers 80-57 for their fifth straight victory.
Three Lions finished in double-digits in the victory. Kryslyn Jones led the Lions in scoring with 18 points (6-12 FG, 4-4 FT), five rebounds and two steals. Brandi Hudson finished with 15 points (7-12 FG), five rebounds and three assists. Kaitlin Hunnicutt rounded out the double-digit scoring with 14 points (5-13 FG, 3-4 FT), five rebounds and two steals.
