Jennies drop fifth straight on road

               The University of Central Missouri Jennies dropped their fifth straight on the road on Wednesday night, 84-73, to Fort Hays State. The Lady Tigers took advantage of the Jennies, who played without starting point guard and leading scorer, Lindsey Maple.
            The Jennies (12-9, 5-7 MIAA) scored the first six points of the opening period and had 18 of their 29 points from behind the three-point line. Fort Hays (12-9, 4-9 MIAA) answered the UCM start with a 17-6 run led by a 21-14 margin by the 12:52 mark. The Jennies crept back and got to within four off a three from Megan Schoenfeld but the Lady Tigers went on a big run to close the half. Holding UCM scoreless for the final six minutes, FHSU rolled into the break with its biggest lead of the game at 46-29. Ashley Millham led the Jens with nine points, while the Lady Tigers were paced by forward Ashley Gustin, who scored at will inside with 13 in the period.
            The Jennies failed to make a dent in the Lady Tigers’ lead until it was too late and even then it was a 10-point advantage. The Jens pressed most of the half and forced 19 FHSU turnovers in the period but they couldn’t convert those chances into points. In the end it was too much Gustin, as she tallied 26 points. The Lady Tigers took advantage of open looks and hit 60 percent from the floor in both halves. The shooting percentage was a season-high for FHSU.
            Central Missouri put up a school record 37 three-point attempts, breaking the mark of 35 that it set against Missouri Southern earlier this season. UCM hit only 10 of those attempts.
            Millham led the Jennies with 21 points while Kim Battle totaled 15 and Schoenfeld hit for 10. Central Missouri hit only 35 percent from the floor, but attempted a season-high 73 field goal attempts.