Box Score (HTML) | Season Statistics (HTML) | Photo Gallery KANSAS CITY, Mo -- The fifth-seeded Jennies fell, 59-53 to No. 1 seeded Fort Hays State in the MIAA Tournament semifinals at the Municipal Auditorium on Saturday night.
The Jennies (21-9) limited Fort Hays State to 28.3% shooting (17-of-60) from the floor, but attempted just 12 free throw shots to the Tigers' 30. Junior Shelby WInkelmann paced UCM in scoring with 14 points to go with 10 rebounds. Senior
Revonnia Howard added 13 points, seven rebounds, two steals and two blocked shots. The two blocked shots moved her into sole possession for fifth place on the Jennies' all-time list with 94.
UCM's largest lead stood at three points (14-11) at the 10:14 mark of the first half. With the game tied at 16-16 with 8:27 on the first half clock, the Tigers' Kate Lehman scored on a three-point play that cancelled out
Tayler Weiks' three-pointer that had tied the game at 16-16 apiece.
Winkelmann's layup with 4:03 left made it a 19-18 game in favor of Fort Hays State, but the deficit shot up to four following a trey by Chelsea Mason. The Jennies went into halftime trailing, 26-20. Winkelmann and Howard shared the team lead with six points each.
In the second half, Howard and senior
Jasmine Thompson combined for the first six points to tie the game at 26-26.
A 5-0 run by Fort Hays State put UCM in a 31-26 hole with 14:59 to play in the game. Central Missouri closed the gap to two points at 32-30 via a layup by junior
Danielle Barry, but the Tigers rattled off five straight points to go ahead, 37-30 with just under 10 minutes remaining.
Winkelmann's three-point play and a pair of free throws from senior
Justina Prairie Chief made it a 37-35 tally, but a 7-4 run by Fort Hays State bumped the lead back to five points.
Onnce again, the Jennies tied the score at 44-44 following a three-point play from Winkelmann and a jumper from Howard. The two foes exchanged two made free throws as the game reached its sixth and final tie at 46-46 with 5:53 left.
Fort Hays State scored seven of the next eight points to go up, 53-47, but the Jennies kept the score close with four straight points to make it a two-point game with under 2 1/2 minutes to go in the game.
The Tigers finished the game hitting 4-of-4 free throws along with a layup, eliminating the Jennies from the MIAA Tournament.
UCM led the Tigers in points in the paint, 32-16, but Fort Hays State held an 18-13 edge in second-chance points. The Jennies missed all 10 of their three-point attempts, all coming after halftime, despite shooting 40% (12-of-30) in the second half.
The loss snapped the Jennies' nine-game win streak.
