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KEARNEY, Neb. - In their first road test in nearly a month, the No. 11 Central Missouri Jennies held on for a 68-63 victory over the Nebraska-Kearney Lopers. The Jens were led by two of their leading scorers, as senior Nicole Caddell finished with a game-high 22 points and 10 rebounds for her sixth double-double of the season. Junior Keuna Flax pitched in with 21 points as well, reaching the 20-point mark for the third time in her last four games, and the fifth time overall.

The Jennies (13-1, 5-1 MIAA) looked to be in control throughout much of the first half, building up a 14-7 lead through the first three and a half minutes of play. Caddell was dominant early, scoring the Jennies first ten points of the game; she fininshed the first half with 12 points, going a perfect 5-of-5 from the field, and 2-of-2 from the charity stripe. 

The Lopers (4-10, 1-6 MIAA) would cut the Jens' early lead down to two points at the 12:23 mark with a Sydney Seberger jumper, but the Jennies responded with three treys from three different players. Erin Redmond, Symone Murray, and Quinnecia Twine teamed up for a quick 9-0 run to give Central Missouri a 29-18 advantage with 8:09 in the first half.

Rebounding was an issue for the Jennies, who gave up ten second-chance points in the first half, and were outrebounded 20-17 before intermission. UNK was able to stay in the game through their work on the glass; the Lopers finished with a 48-34 rebounding margin, including 25 offensive boards  that led to 24 second-chance points.

Central Missouri was able to maintain a double-digit lead throughout the majority of the second half, but were never quite able to build on their advantage and put the game away. The Jennies held an 11 point lead with 9:08 to play before UNK used a 7-2 run to close to within six points at the 5:54 mark. A layup from UNK's Queen Ohamara made it a 67-63 UCM lead, but that would be as close as the Lopers would get, as the Jens defense tightened up to force three turnovers in the final minute to close out the win.

After her 22 points tonight, Caddell increases her career scoring total to 948 points, just 52 shy of the 1,000-point mark.

The victory increases the Jennies current win streak to eight games, as their current 13-1 record through the first 14 games of the season is the team's best since 1995-96. The Jens also move into sole possession of second place in the early-season MIAA standings, with their 5-1 mark in league play.

Central Missouri will finish up their two-game road trip as they travel to Kirksville to take on the Truman Bulldogs on Saturday, January 19. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m., as all the action can be heard on 98.5 The Bar, 1450 KOKO, and online at www.warrensburgradio.com