Fulton, Mo 12/4/2022- The Westminster College women's basketball team played in their third home game in five days on Sunday afternoon as they took on the Rhodes College Lynx. The Blue Jays have lost their last five games heading into Sunday. The Lynx came into the game, losers of two straight. Westminster and Rhodes played a back-and-forth game throughout the afternoon. Rhodes would lead by eleven points at the end of the first quarter. The Blue Jays would come roaring back to not only tie the game but take the lead 36-32 heading into halftime. Westminster would grow their lead to twenty points and win the game 80-68 to snap their losing streak and get their second win on the season. The Jays are now 2-5 and the Lynx fall to 3-4, losing their third game in a row.
Shelby Kurtz (Camdenton, MO/Camdenton) scored eight of Westminster's first ten points of the game. She would make a three-pointer at the 4:55 mark to make it 11-10 with Rhodes leading by one. The Lynx would answer with a three of their own and go on a 10-0 run to end the first quarter leading 21-10.
Annette Ramirez (Sarcoxie, MO / Sarcoxie) started the second quarter with a bang hitting a three and starting the Blue Jays' comeback. The Blue Jays would tie the game at 28-28 with 3:56 to go before halftime after Natalie Archambault (Eureka, MO / -) hit a huge three-pointer. Ramirez would hit another three-pointer on the next possession to give the Jays the lead. The offense was rolling as Westminster went to the locker room leading 36-32.
The Lynx would start the second half firing, starting on a 6-2 run and tying the game 38-38. The third quarter saw both teams scoring back and forth, not giving an inch. Rhodes would get a three-point play to make it 49-47 with 2:59 to go in the quarter. Carli Libhart (Rolla, Mo / Rolla) would make a three with forty-seven seconds left in the third. The Lynx would turn the ball over on their next possession. Blue Jay head coach Talisha Washington would call timeout with nineteen seconds left. After the timeout, Ramirez cashed a three-pointer with seven seconds left to give her team a 60-51. Rhodes could not inbound the ball because, after the shot, the ball would roll to the wall with the clock still running to conclude the third quarter.
Westminster would pull away in the fourth quarter going up twenty points with 5:39 left to play and the score was 74-54. The lynx would make a late run, but it would be to little too late as the Blue Jays win it 80-68.
Archambault scored a career-high and game-high 26 points. She was 9-15 from the field, 1-1 from three, and 7-10 from the free throw line. Ramirez scored 21 points and made three three-pointers. Kurtz had 13 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists, and go 3-5 from behind the arc. Aly Bullock (St. James, MO / St. James) had a team-high 5 assists and a lot of them came in key moments of the game. She would also haul in 3 rebounds.
The Blue Jays will be back in action for their fourth straight home game on Saturday, December 10th when they take on Central Christian College of the Bible. That game tips off at 1:00 PM inside the Historic Gym.
