A River States Conference matchup between the RSC's top two units in defensive points per game certainly proved to be a grind throughout a 40-minute affair between the Shawnee State women's basketball program and the Brescia Bearcats' women's basketball program Thursday evening in Owensboro, Ky.

So it was only fitting that perhaps the grittiest player on the floor not only had the largest impact -- but came up with the game-winning play, to boot.

Shawnee State senior forward Cianna Gloster took a missed shot on the right side of the paint and put her own putback attempt through the hoop just prior to time expiring in regulation -- helping lift the Bears to a 48-47 victory over Brescia in a road contest that was nothing short of a gritty performance from DeWayne Burroughs' club.

SSU (10-6, 3-3 RSC) was held to 15-of-42 shooting from the floor while the Bears, in turn, held Brescia to a slightly better 18-of-46 mark (39.1 percent) from the field -- but Burroughs' group clearly won the contest with its play on the glass as Shawnee State claimed a plus-13 advantage on the glass (36-23) over Brescia.

Additionally, Shawnee State held Brescia's leading scorer, Lindsey Peyton -- who came in averaging 14.1 points and 6.4 rebounds per contest -- to just six points and four rebounds. Peyton committed six turnovers and didn't post an assist in the contest, as well.

Ci. Gloster glue to early start

Despite a start that forced Shawnee State to overcome an early 11-5 deficit behind the early work of Cianna Gloster -- as the 6-1 senior forward terrorized Brescia's frontline for seven points and seven rebounds, in the opening quarter alone.

This play was critical -- as Gloster ultimately helped Shawnee State go on a 12-0 run from the 3:53 mark of the opening quarter to the 8:56 mark of the second frame to give the Bears a 17-11 advantage. From there, Brescia came back to briefly tie the score at 19 apiece -- but Emily Maynard's go-ahead three-pointer with 1:10 to play in the opening half allowed the Bears to finish the half on a 5-0 spurt and take a 24-19 lead in the halftime locker room.

Holland hits Bearcats with Bear flurry

Needing a spark from their leading scorer, Markayla Holland provided just that by doing her usual work.

Holland, who scored all 12 of her points in the second half of competition, made an early living at the free throw line by going 4-of-5 from the charity stripe to start -- then knocked down back-to-back three-point attempts, one from the left wing and another from the top of the three-point arc with a hand in her face -- to give SSU a 40-35 advantage with 9:24 remaining in the game.

Gloster, Holland show poise in survival

Over the next 8:29, however, Shawnee State connected on just one final goal -- allowing Brescia to take a 47-44 lead as Genesis Ghide-Bryan scored on a driving layup with 1:08 left -- but Holland notched her final bucket with :58 ticks to go to bring SSU within one, 47-46.

After forcing a Ghide-Bryan turnover with 16 seconds left to play, Brescia turned around and forced an SSU turnover with nine seconds left. However, following a Bearcat timeout that saw Brescia have basketball on a side-out, the Bearcats were called for a five-second count after not getting the basketball up in time.

With a chance to win the contest, Shawnee State allowed Holland to take the reins. The sophomore didn't finish her driving layup down the lane -- but Gloster, on her game-high 15th and final rebound of the contest -- did, grabbing her game-high 15th rebound and notching her first and only bucket of the second half at the most critical of moments to give Shawnee State the victory in dramatic fashion.

Gloster ultimately finished with 15 rebounds, nine points and three steals on 3-for-7 shooting while playing a team-high 32 minutes in the contest -- while Holland added in 12 points and two rebounds on 3-for-6 shooting from the field in 17 minutes of gametime action.

Additional

Jariah Steele (seven points, four rebounds, two steals), Lexi Deaver (five points, three rebounds), Teyarra Johnson (five points), and Sanaya Gregory (four points, three assists, two steals) all contributed in multiple areas in the victory, while Amiya Latham and Emily Maynard each nailed a three-pointer in the contest to round out the scoring.

Shawnee State will turn its attention to a Saturday afternoon contest against Oakland City (Ind.) -- which begins at 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT.

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