After two minutes of scoreless basketball the Bearcats put together an 8-0 run, led by Morgan Henderson’s 5 points, to open up the contest. KCC responded with four straight points to cut the lead in half, but a Taylor Jackson three and a Natalie O’Keefe layup gave SBU a 13-4 lead with 4:02 left in the quarter. SBU saw their first double-digit lead of the game on a Monique Manuel jumper (15-5) before taking a 17-8 lead into the second quarter.
Both teams exchanged points over the first three minutes of the quarter, with SBU leading 20-12 with 6:44 left in the half. the Bearcats responded with an 8-0 run with points from Mackenzie Skupa, Henderson, and O’Keefe to take a 28-12 lead with 4:45 left in the quarter. SBU held strong for the remainder on the period, using a 4-0 solo run by Skupa to head into the half with a 37-17 lead.
The Bearcats came out strong in the third quarter, using an 18-0 run to extend their lead to 55-17 with 2:48 left in the quarter. KCC wouldn’t score until the 2:18 mark in the quarter, as the Bearcats pushed their lead to 40 (58-18) before taking a 60-21 lead in the final quarter of play.
In the fourth quarter the Bearcats continued to cruise, and a Kameron Schaaf jumper with 2:04 remaining in the game gave SBU their largest lead of the night at 51 (85-34). A Laura Vierkant jumper closed out the scoring on the contest with SBU coming away with an 88-37 victory.
SBU was led in scoring by Kameron Schaaf, Laura Vierkant, and Kiana Peterson who all had 11 points in the victory. Schaaf picked up a career high in points, while Gokce Cetin pulled down a career high 10 rebounds in the victory. As a team SBU shot 45.3% from the field, 32.0% from beyond the arc, and 70.6% from the free throw line.
The Bearcats will return to action on Saturday, December 31 when they host Avila. Tip-off is set for 1:00 p.m. from the Meyer Sports Center in Bolivar.
