Jackson, Tenn. – Shawnee State women's basketball suffered their first defeat of 2018-19 on Friday, falling to No. 12 MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) 78-69 on day one of the NAIA Invitational at Oman Arena.
The first quarter would start well for SSU as Hannah Miller (SR/Coal Grove, Ohio) and Bailey Cummins (JR/Brooksville, Kentucky) hit back-to-back lay-ups for an early 4-0 lead. Whitney Moia would answer with a pair of shots in the post, but Miller and Ashton Lovely (SR/Jamestown, Ohio) would combine for six points to get the Bears back up 10-4.
That lead would not hold up, as MidAmerica Nazarene would chip away at the lead. Brooklyn Wagler would hit a three with 4:35 to go in the first quarter to put the Pioneers up 17-15, their first lead of the afternoon. The lead reached a peak of seven points at 22-15 on a Jayden Oliver jumper. SSU would chip away at the lead, and Laken Smith (SO/Waverly, Ohio)'s lay-in would see the Bears trail 26-25 at the quarter break.
MidAmerica Nazarene would assert themselves back into the lead in the second quarter. Jovana Jovovic would put the out to a then game-high eight points with a three at 36-28. The Pioneers would maintain their lead, never seeing it fall below four points for the rest of the half. Jovovic would hit in the post at the end of the half to put MNU up 44-37 at halftime.
Shawnee State would rally early in the third quarter. Miller and Cummins would cut the lead down to 44-41 early in the period, and SSU would keep the game close. Sydney King (JR/Birmingham, Alabama) would provide a spark later in the quarter for SSU, helping Shawnee State start an 8-0 run to take a 51-50 lead with 4:28 to go in the quarter. However, MidAmerica Nazarene would respond with a three from Jayden Oliver, and the Pioneers would never trail from there.
Kechelle Figueroa would hit a three early in the fourth quarter to see the Pioneer lead expand to 10 points at 67-57. SSU would try to rally, eventually cutting the lead to five points through Sydney King, but the rally would come too late. MidAmerica Nazarene would hold on, hitting free throws down the stretch for a 78-69 win.
A tough shooting day for Shawnee State saw the Bears shoot 23-75 from the field, including a 0-24 mark from three. Friday's game was the first time SSU had failed to hit a three pointer since February 2, 2015 against Cumberland (Tenn.), when the Bears went 0-2 from behind the arc. The Bears did shoot 23-28 from the free throw line. SSU were outrebounded by MidAmerica Nazarene 45-38.
Ashton Lovely had 20 points to lead Shawnee State on the afternoon. Sydney King had 15, Hannah Miller added 12 and Bailey Cummins had 10 for the Bears.
Jovana Jovovic had 20 points to lead MidAmerica Nazarene in the win. Kechelle Figueroa had 19, and Jayden Oliver had 16.
The loss is Shawnee State's first of the season, seeing the Bears fall to 7-1 on the season. MidAmerica Nazarene improves to 6-0 on the season. The Pioneers have won the first game in the series, holding a 1-0 lead on SSU.
Shawnee State women's basketball have a fast turnaround on Saturday, November 24 when they take on No. 5 Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) on day two of the NAIA Invitational. Tipoff is set for 7:00pm Eastern/6:00pm Central.
