Hillcats Fall in Road Trip Finale at Emporia State
 
EMPORIA, Kan. - The Rogers State women's basketball team couldn't recover after a slow start in the fourth quarter as the Hillcats fell to Emporia State, 88-74, Monday afternoon at White Auditorium.
 
The Hillcats (4-8, 0-6 MIAA) were led by Katrina Christian and Kylee Day who each registered their career-high, scoring 19 and 18 points respectively. Bailey Kliewer finished with 13 points and Julie Luna tallied 10 points to round out the double-digit scorers.
 
RSU got a slow start as the Lady Hornets (8-4, 3-3 MIAA) started the contest with a 7-0 run and led 14-8 at the end of the first quarter. The Hillcats settled in during the second quarter, going 5-6 from behind the arc, shooting 50 percent from the field and going a perfect 9-9 from the free throw line.  RSU closed out the half on an 8-0 run capped with a three-pointer by Jordan Lewis to tie the game 40-40 going into the break.
 
The teams battled through the third quarter and the Lady Hornets took a two-point advantage into the fourth quarter. ESU used an 11-2 run in the middle of the final stanza to give them a 12-point advantage with three minutes to play. Christian answered with a layup but the deficit was too much for the Hillcats to overcome.
 
RSU returns to action at the Claremore Expo on New Years Day, taking on Nebraska-Kearney at 1:30 pm. Listen to the game live on RSU Radio 91.3 FM and watch on the MIAA Network.