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University of Central Oklahoma Athletics

The Official Site of Central Oklahoma University Athletics Central Oklahoma Athletics
Kaci Richardson
74
Central Okla. CentOK 14-5,8-3 Mid-America Intercollegiate
90
Winner Emporia St. ESU 14-4,7-2 Mid-America Intercollegiate
Central Okla. CentOK
14-5,8-3 Mid-America Intercollegiate
74
Final
90
Emporia St. ESU
14-4,7-2 Mid-America Intercollegiate
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Central Okla. CentOK 21 17 18 18 74
Emporia St. ESU 18 31 23 18 90

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Chris Brannick

Central Comes Up Short At Emporia

EMPORIA, Kan. – The University of Central Oklahoma women's basketball team caught Emporia State on a day it seemed the Hornets couldn't miss and the Bronchos fell, 90-74, to their Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association foe.
 
"They did a good job getting open looks," UCO head coach Guy Hardaker said. "It's hard to beat a team that shoots it that well and we didn't do ourselves any favors the way we played defense. We couldn't force turnovers and kept giving them open looks. That hasn't been us all season and we need to forget about today and move forward."
 
Emporia State hit four 3-pointers in the first period, eight in the second frame, and went on to shoot 18-42 from behind the arc on the afternoon.
 
UCO shot 40 percent from the floor overall, making 26 of 65 shots. The Bronchos hit 9 of 26 3-pointers and 13 of 17 free-throw attempts.
 
Kaci Richardson's 14 points led UCO Sunday to go with four rebounds. She was 5-for-8 from the floor, 1-for-1 from behind the arc, and 3-for-3 from the free-throw line.
 
Kelsey Johnson had a similar game, adding 12 points. The junior forward was 4-for-10 from the field, 1-for-2 from outside the arc, and 3-for-3 from the free-throw line. Micayla Haynes added 11 points. Both had three rebounds. Shatoya Bryson scored five and had a team-high seven rebounds.
 
Central used its first timeout just 86 seconds into Sunday's game. The Bronchos were down 6-0 after just two defensive possessions. But UCO had a response.
 
The Bronchos spent the rest of the quarter building a lead. Haynes knocked down a 3-pointer to tie the game, 9-9, and Johnson tied it 11-11 moments later. Bryson gave the Bronchos their first lead of the game, 13-11 on a steal and fastbreak layup.
 
UCO built an 18-12 after Haynes hit another 3-pointer and McKenna Pulley put in a layup. After the first 10 minutes, Central led 21-18.
 
But Emporia made a big run in the first half of the second quarter, thanks to a 5-for-6 shooting performance from behind the arc in the first 5:20. An 11-0 run in the middle of that left the Bronchos needing to comeback toward halftime.
 
ESU kept a hot-shooting first-half from behind the arc going throughout the quarter and led 49-38 at halftime. The Hornets hit 12 of 22 3-pointers in the first 20 minutes.
 
Emporia extended an 11-point lead at halftime to a 16-point lead heading into the final quarter. In the end, Central couldn't keep pace with the torrid shooting by ESU.
 
Pulley finished with eight points and four rebounds. Jaci Littell, in her return to the court after a two-game absence, scored six points and pulled down four rebounds. Lauren Chancellor also scored six points and had three assists. Brooke Rayner and Clary Donica both scored five while Maddie Harelson added two.
 
Central Oklahoma returns home for a pair of games next week. The Bronchos host Missouri Western on Thursday night at Hamilton Field House and Northwest Missouri on Saturday afternoon.
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