EMPORIA, Kan. – The Southwest Baptist University women's basketball team fell on the road at #21 Emporia State on Wednesday evening 82-72. After the loss, SBU drops to 12-11 (7-10 MIAA).
The Bearcats and Lady Hornets were engaged in a back-and-forth battle for the entire first half of the contest. After ESU opened the game with a layup, SBU used a Sarah Magana jumper and two buckets from Caylee Richardson to take a 6-4 lead with 6:12 remaining in the first quarter. The Bearcats and Lady Hornets exchanged leads four times before a Megan Rosenbohm three forced an ESU timeout as SBU lead 17-13 with 1:18 left in the quarter. ESU ended the quarter on a 6-0 run as SBU trailed 19-17 after one quarter of play.
SBU opened up the second quarter with a three from Dilonna Johnson to re-take the lead at 20-19 before ESU re-took the lead on the following possession. The Lady Hornets continued to hold a small lead, but a Magana three with 4:02 left in the half gave the Bearcats a 31-30 lead, and a Leann Terrill three extended the lead to four (34-30) with 2:21 left in the half. Scoring went back-and-forth but a ESU layup with three seconds left in the half sent SBU into the break trailing 38-36.
The Bearcats once again opened the quarter up with a layup from Alex Botkin to knot the game at 38-38. ESU responded with a 14-0 run over the next four minutes, as the Bearcats would end the third quarter trailing 61-49.
After trailing by 15 (66-51) with 7:55 left in the game, the Bearcats started to chip away, and a solo 9-2 run, fueled with 8 points by Richardson, cut the deficit to 8 (68-60) with 5:40 to go. However, ESU would continue to keep SBU at an arm's length away, despite 16 points from Richardson, as the Bearcats would eventually fall 82-72.
As a team SBU shot 46.9% from the field, 21.1% from beyond the arc, and 80.0% from the free throw line. Caylee Richardson scored a game high 24 points to go along with 8 rebounds, while Sarah Magana scored a career high 14 points with 6 assists and Dilonna Johnson chipped in 13 points and 5 assists.
The Bearcats will return to action on Saturday, Febraury 13 when they host Central Missouri. Play is set to begin at 1:30 p.m. from the Meyer Sports Center in Bolivar.
