November 14, 2017-Emily Miller scored off the opening tip and the #11 Lady Hornets never looked back in a 63-49 win at Ark.-Fort Smith on Tuesday night.
Emporia State jumped out to an 8-2 lead in the first 3:47 of the game and the Lady Lions never got closer than four points the rest of the quarter. Morgan Laudan scored six points in the final 2:16 of the quarter as the Lady Hornets closed the period on a 9-1 run capped by a Laudan buzzer beater for a 21-9 lead after one.
The Lady Hornets used a 9-0 run in the second quarter to turn a nine point lead into an 18 point lead with 55 seconds left in the half. UAFS hit three fo four free throws in the final 36 seconds of the period as Emporia State led 34-19 at the break. TheLady Hornets had a 24-8 advantage in the paint and 20-10 lead off the bench in the first half thanks in large part to Laudan's ten first half points.
Emily Miller opened the second half with a three pointer to push the Lady Hornet lead back up to 18 points with 9:45 left in the third. The Lady Lions responded with an 8-0 run to cut the lead to 37-27 with 7:19 left in the quarter. Marissa Preston broke the run with a three pointer off a Laudan assist and the teams basically traded scores for the rest of the period as Emporia State took a 51-38 lead into the final quarter.
The Lady Hornets were one of ten from the free throw line to start the fourth quarter but actually grew their lead from 13 to 17 points midway through the period. Preston and Moala hit back to back layups to give Emporia State a 58-41 lead with 5:14 left in the game. Emporia State then hit five of eight from the charity stripe in the final 2:30 to secure the 63-49 road win.
Emily Miller was six of nine for the field for a game high 16 points and added six rebounds for Emporia State. She was joined in double figures by Jessica Wayne with 12 points, six rebounds and three steals while Morgan Laudan scored 11 points with five boards and four assists. Tiana Moala had eight points, a game high nine rebounds and two blocked shots for the Lady Hornets.
The next action for Emporia State will by on Monday, November 20 when they travel to Newman. Tip-off in Fugate Gymnasium in Wichita, Kan. is set for 7:00 p.m.
