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WARRENSBURG, Mo. -- A strong first half performance for the Jennies led them to a narrow 56-53 win over MIAA rival Northeastern State at the Multipurpose Building on Saturday afternoon. 

The Jennies (8-3, 2-1 MIAA) shot 50% (13-of-26) from the floor in the game's first half, with a team-high nine points coming from junior Shelby Winkelmann before halftime. After falling behind early, 10-6, the UCM offense scored seven straight points to take a 13-10 lead with 11:19 left.

After Northeastern State's Fontana Tate came back with a three to tie the game at 13-13, the Jennies scored 10 of the game's next 12 points, capped off by a triple from senior Justina Prairie Chief with just under seven minutes remaining in the half.

The two foes finished the half scoring seven points each, giving the Jennies a 30-22 edge at intermission. UCM outscored the RiverHawks, 20-12 in the paint and scored nine points off turnovers. 

Just 25 seconds into the game's final 20 minutes, senior Jasmine Thompson buried a three to put UCM ahead, 33-22. 

Northeastern State sliced the Jennies' lead to seven following a pair of layups, but Winkelmann and senior Revonnia Howard combined for the next five UCM points, inceasing the advantage to 38-28 with 15:50 left in the game. 

Two more baskets from Northeastern State's Tate and Bria Pierce narrowed the gap to six, but a free throw from Thompson and a trey by junior Tayler Weiks helped the Jennies sustain a double-digit point lead. Weiks came back three possessions later to bury another three following a mini 4-0 run by the RiverHawks, helping UCM go back up, 45-36.

Central Missouri's lead reached 12 after junior Danielle Barry split a pair of free throws and Prairie Chief dropped in a layup. NSU's Mya Walker answered with a three, but Weiks again came through with her third three-pointer to bump UCM ahead by a dozen points with 5:59 to go.

Northeastern State jumped back into the game, scoring seven unanswered points with 3:22 left, but senior Breonna Embray hit a triple on the next Jennies' possession, making it a 54-49 game with just under three minutes left. 

Following a pair of free throw makes by Walker and a jumper by Chelsey Beathard, cutting the Jennies' lead to a point with 38 seconds left, Winkelmann drew a foul from Walker. Winkelmann deposited both free throws with 21 seconds left, putting the Jens ahead, 56-53, while UCM came through with a defensive stop on the game's final possession to preserve the three-point win. 

With the victory, the Jennies improve to 4-0 all-time against Northeastern State. Ten of the Jennies' 15 bench points came in the second half. 

Weiks scored a career-high 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the floor, including 3-of-5 from beyond the three-point arc. The three triples for Weiks tied her career high. 

The Jennies are off until Saturday, January 3 when they travel to Nebraska-Kearney to face off with the Lopers. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m.