The game commenced with a back-and-forth first quarter, as the Prairie Stars and Tritons traded baskets early on. Allison Wheeler drained a three-pointer early on, assisted by Molly Knight, to narrow the deficit after UMSL opened with early scoring. Kayla Rice contributed significantly, scoring on a jumper from the paint at 7:30, and later facilitated with a steal and an assist to Allysia McDaniel’s layup at 3:49.
Despite a strong effort that included a late quarter surge with Julia Mingus scoring five points, including a game-tying layup, the Prairie Stars concluded the first quarter trailing 18-16.
UIS faced a challenging second quarter, briefly tying the game at 18 with a layup by Mingus. Despite this effort, turnovers became a hurdle, with the Prairie Stars committing eight in the quarter. UMSL capitalized on these opportunities, extending their lead with a strong performance in the paint. The Prairie Stars tightened the gap slightly with a three3-pointer from Kennedy Osterman at 5:13, but ultimately trailed 35-27 at halftime.
Osterman provided a spark in the third quarter with an early three-pointer, narrowing the deficit to 37-30. However, the Tritons countered with a consistent offensive performance, utilizing strong rebounding and scoring in the paint. UIS struggled to find rhythm offensively, scoring seven points in the quarter. The third concluded with UMSL leading 57-34.
The Prairie Stars opened the fourth quarter with another strong effort from Osterman, who contributed a layup and jumper. Molly Knight added a three with assistance from Osterman, narrowing the gap late in the game. Despite these efforts, UMSL maintained its advantage with effective scoring in the paint. The quarter concluded with both teams scoring 12 points each. UMSL secured the victory with a final score of 69-46.
Julia Mingus led the Prairie Stars with 12 points, converting 4 of 6 field goal attempts, including two three-pointers. Her consistent scoring has been a highlight for the team, as the freshman has recorded at least 10 points in every game of her collegiate career. Kennedy Osterman contributed 11 points with two three-pointers and added one assist. McDaniel posted six points and matched Libby Blythe with six rebounds. Rice added five points, recorded two steals, and distributed two assists.
The Prairie Stars stand at 2-4 overall and 0-1 in GLVC play. UMSL is now 4-1 overall and 1-0 in the GLVC.
Up Next
UIS opens a three-game GLVC homestand on Monday night against William Jewell, followed by McKendree on Thursday and Maryville on Saturday afternoon.
