The Northwest Missouri State women’s basketball team rallied late but ended up just short, losing to Lincoln, 66-56, Saturday afternoon in Jefferson City.

After trailing by as many as 16 points midway through the second half, the Bearcats put together a 25-11 run over a stretch of 11 minutes to close the gap to two with 2:48 to play.

Ariel Easton led the Bearcats with 19 points and six rebounds, while freshman Tanya Meyer scored 15 points in the contest, all of which came in the final 13 minutes of play.

The Bearcats found themselves behind by 16 when Kelsey Williams hit a short range jumper for the Blue Tigers. After Coach Michael Smith called a timeout to rally the troops, Tanya Meyer went on a shooting spree. Morgan Walker found Meyer underneath for an easy layup. Meyer then hit an 18-footer from the top of the key two possessions later. Alexandria Blaurock made a layup and the ensuing free throw to close the gap to 47-36. Meyer then scored the next six points for the Bearcats, seemingly scoring at will in the paint. Ariel Easton drove to the rim and hit contested layups on the next two Bearcat possessions to make the score 50-46 with five minutes to play. A three-pointer from the corner by Tember Schechinger decresed the deficit to two, but the Blue Tigers hit 7-of-10 free throws down the strech to seal the victory.

The Bearcats will look to return to the victory column when they head to St. Joseph, Mo. on Wednesday to play the Griffons of Missouri Western. The women’s game is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m.

— Northwest Sports Information —