FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jan.20, 2007

Lions fall at home 86-69 to Fort Hays State

Box Score

Joplin, Mo. - Ashlee Gustin scored a game-high 28 points to lead a potent Fort Hays State inside attack as the Fort Hays Lady Tigers handed the Missouri Southern Lions their third straight loss, 86-69 Saturday night (Jan. 20) at the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center.

After the Lions (10-5, 3-4 MIAA) scored the first four points of the contest, the Lady Tigers took the lead by scoring the next 10 points over a span of 2:13.

Southern did manage to tie the score by scoring six straight on three-points from Robin Kantin (Silver Spring, Md.) and Ela Zawadka (Torun, Poland).

The two teams then exchanged 5-0 runs to tie the score at 15-15 with 9:56 remaining in the first half before the Lady Tigers took the lead for good with a 6-0 run that was capped by a layup from Meshia Mason with 8:08 left.

Fort Hays (10-6, 2-6 MIAA) continued to build the lead and grabbed their biggest advantage of the half on a pair of free throws from Gustin that gave the Lady Tigers a 41-30 lead at the half.

The Lions shot only 37 percent (13-of-35) in the first half, compared to a 46.4 percent shooting clip for Fort Hays (13-of-28).

The shooting improved for the Lions to begin the second half as Danielle DeVader hit three treys in the first 2:08 after halftime, but the Lions could not make up much ground as Gustin scored five quick points of her own and the Lady Tigers led 48-38 with 17:53 left in the game.

MSSU gradually began to rally and trimmed the deficit to three when Kantin hit a three to make it 65-62 Fort Hays with 8:51 left.

But as was the case for much of the night, Gustin had an answer and scored the next seven Lady Tiger points that included a three-point to give Fort Hays a 72-63 lead with 6:11 remaining. The Lions never got any closer from that point.

Tynesha Pierce (Houston, Texas) led four Lions in double-figures with 17 points, followed by Kantin with 14. Fatai Hala Api Api (Lahaina, Hawaii) scored 11, while Zawadka had 10. Pierce also had a team-high six rebounds.

In addition to Gustin s 28 points, four other Lady Tigers also reached double-digit scoring. Mason scored 15 and Naomi Bancroft contributed 14. Sheena Kuntzsch and Katie Rausch each scored 13. Gustin led Fort Hays with 11 boards.

Fort Hays outscored the Lions 42-30 in the paint, including a 30-14 edge in the second half.

The Lady Tigers also turned 22 Southern turnovers into 28 points.

The Lions hit 53.8 percent (14-of-26) of their shots in the second half to rebound to a 44.3 shooting percentage for the game. Fort Hays shot 51.5 percent (17-of-33) in the second half and 49.2 percent overall.

Southern will only have a one-day turnaround as they will play Monday night (Jan. 20) in Bolivar, Mo. at Southwest Baptist at 5:45 p.m. The game at SBU was originally scheduled for Jan. 13, but a winter storm forced the postponement.

The Lions and SBU split a pair of meetings last year, with each team winning at home.