Jennies come back, but fall to Gorillas

               The University of Central Missouri Jennies made a valiant comeback bid but Pittsburg State hit its free throws down the stretch to grab a 79-71 MIAA win on Saturday afternoon at John Lance Arena. PSU evened the score, as UCM defeated them the first time around in Warrensburg.
            The Gorillas (9-9, 4-6 MIAA) started the game on a 14-6 run but the Jennies (11-7, 4-5 MIAA) scored a 7-1 rally to cut the lead to a couple, thanks to five points from Lindsey Maple. Pittsburg State would roll after that, taking the advantage to as much as 15 by the 8:27 mark. The Jennies turned the ball over 14 times in the half and shot only 34 percent. They still managed to be down by only a 39-31 margin at the break. Maple had nearly half of the Jens points with 14 at the break while the Gorillas’ Candice Gilbert led all scorers with 15.
            Central Missouri did more of the same in the first 10 minutes of the second stanza, and as a result, were down by 15 again. It looked as if the Gorillas would coast to an easy victory but then the Jennies turned it up with full-court pressure. They forced six turnovers over the next five plus minutes and scored 17 unanswered points to take a 63-61 lead with 4:51 left. Nakaji Mitchell, Kim Battle, and Jojuana Jones were big in the run, playing solid defensively. Out of gas down the stretch, the Jens were forced to foul, and the Gorillas hit 14-of-16 to seal the win. Pittsburg State outscored Central Missouri 18-8 in the final five minutes.
            For the game, Pittsburg State shot 24 more free throws than Central Missouri while both squads combined for 49 turnovers.
            Central Missouri was paced by Maple with 18 while Meagan Fromm chipped in for 12. Megan Schoenfeld also put up double figures with 10 on the day. Gilbert finished with 24 for the Gorillas, while Marissa Poppe tallied 14.