Women's Basketball Scores 25 Unanswered Second Half Points in Rout Over Midland

(Fremont, NE) – Taking on the Midland Warriors in their first game after Thanksgiving break, the women's basketball team scored the first 15 points of the game and the first 25 points in the second half, leading to a 108-54 win on Wednesday. Hastings also tied their record for most three-pointers in the game with 16, marking the fifth such occurrence, including against College of the Ozarks in the NAIA Opening Round last season.

Hastings began the game on a 15-0 run, not allowing a Midland point for over the first five minutes. Senior Macy Bryant made a three on their first possession and junior Bailey Kissinger's steal-and-layup quickly made it 5-0 less than 20 seconds into the game. The Broncos scored their next three baskets on layups, and shortly after two free throws by sophomore Josilyn Miller following a steal, Kissinger capped the run with a basket inside.

Once Midland got their first basket they began to make a run of their own, getting to within 19-12 with 1:23 left in the first. After sophomore Ann Bose responded with a pair of free throws, Midland knocked down a three. Sophomore McKenna Yates came right back with a three of her own, but the Warriors another third three on their final possession of the quarter to get within six at 24-18 after one.

The Warriors capitalized on a Bronco turnover early in the second quarter, making it 24-20, before sophomore Stella Heapy hit from behind the arc. Hastings forced a miss on their next defensive trip and Kissinger turned it into two free throws. Sophomore Adyson Mlnarik's triple pushed the lead back to double digits at 12 with 7:12 left in the half. Senior Mariyah Avila later went on a personal 5-0 run, as Hastings went up 37-22 halfway through the second.

Midland responded with a 10-4 run of their own to make it 41-32 at the 2:09 mark. Avila's jumper and two free throws by Kissinger put Hastings up 13 with a minute left, as the Broncos went to halftime up 45-34. Hastings forced 11 first half turnovers and had a 21-15 rebounding edge. Kissinger led the way for the Broncos with 12 points at the break.

Much like the start of the game, Hastings opened the second half by scoring the first 25 points. Kissinger scored the first four points of the run, then Bryant scored the next five. Bose drilled a three and after a layup by Kissinger off of a Yates steal, Avila drained another one from the outside to go up 62-34 three minutes into the half. Mlnarik continued the run with a triple and after a layup from Miller, the fifth three-pointer of the quarter was made by Heapy to go up 70-34 at the 5:15 mark.

Midland got on the board in the third with 4:30 left and scored the next eight points, bringing the score to 70-42. Hastings closed the quarter strong, starting with a free throw by freshman Catelynn Bargen, then Yates, Bryant, and Avila all hit from deep in consecutive possessions, giving Hastings eight three-pointers in the quarter alone to go up 80-42. The Broncos outscored the Warriors, 35-8, in the period.

Avila scored the first two Hastings baskets in the fourth and Bose later went on a personal 5-0 run, including a three-point play, to go up 91-44 at the 6:49 mark. Hastings pulled ahead to 99-46 with a three from Heapy and and five points from Yates. Mlnarik put the Broncos above the century mark with a jumper and freshman Amirah Pena's triple, which tied the school record with 16 in a game, put Hastings ahead, 104-48, with 3:25 remaining. They would later win the game by the score of 108-54.

Hastings was 11-19 from three in the second half and shot 57 percent in the second half, outscoring the Warriors, 63-20 in the last half alone. They also forced 20 turnovers and had a 31-11 advantage in the rebounding battle in just the second half, making it 52-26 for the game.

Kissinger scored 20 points in 19 minutes, while also leading to the team with eight rebounds, along with five assists. Avila had 19 points and five rebounds, and Bryant had 15 points. Bose contributed 12 points and Yates stuffed the stat sheet with 11 points, eight assists, and six rebounds. Yates, Avila, Kissinger, and Heapy all recorded three made triples.

Up next, Hastings will host (RV) Northwestern on Saturday, Dec. 6 at 2pm.