Missouri State led the University of Pennsylvania by double-digits for much of the first half Friday evening, but a combination of stingy defense and hot-shooting by the Quakers helped the two-time defending Ivy League champions to a 65-60 comeback victory over the Lady Bears in their final game at the Junkanoo Jam.
The Lady Bears (1-4) jumped ahead 5-0 in the first 69 seconds and made it 15-5 with four minutes left in the first quarter on a Liza Fruendt steal and score. Brice Calip‘s 3-point play with 2:19 remaining made it 19-9, and those two players each scored in the first minute of the second period to make it 25-13 MSU.
Missouri State went without a point for nearly four minutes after that, but Penn (2-2) was only able to shave four points off the lead, and the Lady Bears ripped off a 10-0 run over the final 2:29 of the half to lead 39-21 at intermission.
The Quakers flipped the switch in the third period, going 5-for-6 from beyond the arc, forcing seven MSU turnovers, and limiting the Lady Bears to three field goals, tying the contest at 46-all with 1:16 left before Fruendt hit a trey 11 seconds later to regain the lead.
Penn knocked down another triple for a 51-49 lead to open the fourth quarter, and Fruendt and Willard combined for a 7-0 MSU run and a 56-51 advantage with 5:57 left. The Lady Bears led 60-56 on Aubrey Buckley‘s basket with 4:08 to play, but were shut out for the rest of the game, with Penn taking the lead for good at 62-60 on Lauren Whitlatch’s sixth triple with 21.7 seconds left.
Fruendt finished with 25 points and Buckley added 10. Audrey Holt (5) and Calip (4) each recorded career highs for assists, and Fruendt and Calip shared high rebounding honors with five each.
The Lady Bears stay on the road for a 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 29 game at Wichita State. The Shockers return to Springfield on Dec. 7 to complete the home-and-home non-conference series.
