PLAINVIEW, Texas -- The John Brown University women's basketball team used an 11-0 run in the middle of the second quarter to double up the Flying Queens en route to a 68-61 win over Wayland Baptist (Texas) on Thusday night (Jan. 5) inside the Hutcherson Center, grabbing the Golden Eagles' first win in West Texas since Feb. 1, 2014.
Powered by 14 points apiece from sophomore Emily Sanders and junior Natalie Smith, the Golden Eagles (10-4, 4-4 Sooner Athletic) finally returned to .500 in league play as it ended a seven-game losing skid inside the Hutcherson Center.
Graduate Student Maci Mains and senior Lisa Vanoverberghe both hit triples, graduate student Maddie Altman drained a jumper and senior Tarrah Stephens contributed a trio of free throws, which pieced together an 11-0 run in the second quarter that blew open a 23-17 JBU advantage into a 34-17 contest with 2:25 left in the first half.
Smith added one more triple and Sanders sank a jumper just before time expired to actually extend the lead to 18, 39-21, at the break.
After shooting poorly in the first half, the Flying Queens (9-5, 5-3) improved to just over 40 percent in the second half, out-scoring the Golden Eagles 18-14 in the third to close within 14 before the final stanza.
While Wayland would eventually close within five points down the stretch, the visitors never allowed a big Flying Queens rally and responded with a few key buckets to blunt the hosts' momentum. Jenna Jackson-Cooper opened the fourth with a triple, but a Stephens layup and a pair at the line from Vanoverberghe was the answer. At the midway point, Wayland strung together a quick 5-0 run, including an and-one, but Smith's fourth triple of the evening again took the wind out from a WBU comeback bid.
Wayland slowly clawed back, but Stephens finished a layup from junior Bella Spindler with 1:48 remaining. Then, the Golden Eagles finished the road win by hitting all four attempts at the charity stripe – a pair each from Stephens and Spindler – hanging onto the first win of the 2023 calendar year.
Smith and Sanders each hit four triples, while Stephens used a 5-of-6 effort from the line to finish with 11 points and nine rebounds. Vanoverberghe completed a 6-for-6 evening at the foul line, and although John Brown shot just 38 percent (19-of-50), 12 of its 38 buckets were from deep and the visitors ended the evening hitting 18-of-20 from the stripe.
Kaitlyn Edgemon was responsible for a third of Wayland's scoring effort with a game-leading 21 points on 9-of-22 shooting from the floor. Jenna Jackson-Cooper was held in check, and battled through a difficult 3-of-15 scoring line, but added 10 boards. Taylor Houston contributed 11 rebounds in the loss.
John Brown continues its three-game road trip with a contest on Saturday (Jan. 7) afternoon when it takes on Oklahoma Panhandle State inside the Anchor D Arena. The tip is scheduled for 2 p.m.
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