TOP 25 BATTLE GOES TO #20 CENTRAL MISSOURI,79-72 OVER #20 LADY HORNETS

February 9, 2021-In a top 25 battle #20 Central Missouri got the better of the #25 Lady Hornets 79-72 on Tuesday night in White Auditorium.
 
Both teams took a while to feel each other out, with the first points not coming until the 8:21 mark of the opening quarter on an Olivia Nelson three-pointer for the Jennies. The Lady Hornets did not score until a Karsen Schultz three-pointer with 6:51 left in the quarter and only trailed 6-3.  The UCM lead would reach ten points at 13-3 before Emporia State scored again, this time on a pair of free throws from Tre'Zure Jobe with 4:17 left in the quarter.  That started a 6-0 run for the Lady Hornets who would pull to within 13-9 at the 2:22 mark.  The Jennies would end the period with a 19-12 lead thanks in part to a four of seven performance from the three-point line while Emporia State went just one of six from beyond the arc.
 
UCM went up 31-23 on Charley Bovaird's fourth three-pointer of the game with 6:01 left forcing Emporia State into a timeout.  Following the timeout the Lady Hornets went on a 7-0 run and Jobe's layup following an Ehlaina Hartman steal pulled ESU within 31-30 with 4:13 left in the half.  Neither team scored again until Nelson hit a three for UCM with 2:40 left.  The teams traded buckets after that as the Jennies took a 36-32 lead to the locker rooms.
 
Emporia State trailed by four despite getting out-rebounded 27-11 in the opening half and making only three of 13 three-pointers. 
 
Nija Collier opened the scoring in the third quarter for Central Missouri, but after that Jobe scored the next five points to pull Emporia State within a point at 38-37.  Collier broke the mini-run with a putback but Jobe hit two free throws and Ehlaina Hartman drove the lane with 6:55 left to give the Lady Hornets their first lead at 41-40.  Collier scored again for UCM but Jobe answered with a driving layup and Daley Handy hit a three-pointer to give the Lady Hornets a 46-42 lead with 5:31 left in the third.  Emporia State matched their entire first half total of made threes with 4:41 left in the third quarter when Shultz buried one to give the Lady Hornets a 49-44 lead going into the media timeout.
 
Out of the timeout Bovaird and Gigi McAtee hit back to back three-pointers for the Jennies as they regained the lead.  Nelson hit a floater just outside the lane to make it 52-49 with 3:06 left in the third.  Sidney Tinner hit two free throws and Fredricka Sheats scored inside with 2:20 left to give the advantage back to Emporia State.  UCM scored five points in a minute before Sheats scored off a Hartman assist with a minute left and Emporia State trailed 57-55 going to the fourth quarter.
 
Sheats hit a three-pointer to start the final period and put the Lady Hornets up 58-57.  After a McAtee put-back Schultz hit her fourth three-pointer of the night to give Emporia State a 61-59 lead with 6:43 left.  The Lady Hornets would then miss their next six shots as the Jennies went on an 11-0 run over the next four minutes as Morgan VanHyfte gave the Jennies a 70-61 lead with 2:35 left. 
 
Emporia State had one more run in them as Handy broke the scoring drought with 1:19 left on a layup and then three-pointer with 1:00 left to make it 70-66. Emporia State got the ball back after a bad pass by Bovaird with 58.8 seconds left.  Jobe was fouled with 50.4 seconds left and had a chance to cut the lead to two but missed both ends of a two shot foul for the first time this season.  Nelson hit two free throws with 42.3 seconds left to push the lead 72-66.  Sheats scored with 33.6 to get it back to a four point game.  VanHyfte hit two free throw to make it 74-68 with 33.6 seconds left and Jobe answered quickly with a layup to make it 74-70 with 26 seconds left.  Bovaird hit one of two free throws with 22.9 seconds remaining to leave the door open.  Hartman was fouled with 16.3 left and hit both charities to make it a one possession game. Collier and Brooke Littrell then hit four free throws in the final 15.6 seconds to ice the game for Central Missouri.
 
Tre'Zure Jobe had a game high 21 points as all five Lady Hornet starters reached double figures.  Karsen Schultz scored 16 points, Fredricka Sheats had 11 points and ten rebounds while Daley Handy and Ehlaina Hartman each scored ten points.
 
The Lady Hornets forced 17 turnovers and outscored the Jennies 17-9 off those turnovers however Central Missouri had a 48-31 advantage on the boards and had an 18-10 advantage over Emporia State on second chance points.
 
The Lady Hornets will be back in action on Thursday as they play host to Lincoln in a make up game.  Tip-off of Emporia State's seventh game in 15 days is set for 6:00 p.m. in White Auditorium.
 
NOTES
Emporia State is now 25-12 all-time in Top 25 match-ups in White Auditorium and 31-13 against Top 25 teams in White Auditorium.
The Lady Hornets have won five of their last seven home games against Top 25 teams with both losses coming to UCM.