Collins’ Career Night Not Enough in Loss at MUW

COLUMBUS, Miss. – The Eureka women's basketball team closed out its road trip Saturday with a 91-62 loss to MUW, as a tough first quarter left the Red Devils facing an early deficit they were unable to erase.

MUW set the tone right away, racing out to a 15-2 lead in the first quarter. Kayla Collins (Fort Worth, Texas/Fort Worth Christian) stopped the early run with a jumper, and Miracle Armstrong (Chicago, Ill./Wendell Phillips) followed with a layup to trim the deficit to 17-6. The Owls answered with a 9-0 surge to stretch the margin to 26-6 before Armstrong knocked down a free throw to make it 26-7 at the end of the period. Eureka struggled to take care of the ball in the opening 10 minutes, committing 10 turnovers.

MUW scored the first four points of the second quarter to build a 30-7 advantage before Collins and Brooklyn Bowman (Washington, Ill./Washington Community) converted at the free throw line to make it 30-11. The Owls pushed their lead to 38-13, but Railynn Brown (Erlanger, Ky./Lloyd Memorial) and Collins combined on a brief run to cut the deficit to 38-17. MUW maintained control the rest of the half and took a 48-25 lead into the break.

The Owls carried their momentum into the third quarter, opening up a 57-29 edge. Abigail Martinez (Los Alamos, N.M./Los Alamos) and Armstrong each scored on layups as the teams traded baskets down the stretch of the period. MUW led 67-39 heading into the fourth.

MUW extended its advantage to 89-50 early in the final quarter, its largest lead of the night. Eureka responded with its best stretch of the game, putting together an 8-0 run with Collins scoring all eight points to pull within 89-58. Collins accounted for the Red Devils' final 16 points of the game as Eureka closed the gap slightly before the final margin settled at 91-62.

Collins finished with a career-high 32 points to go with four rebounds and three assists. Armstrong added 14 points and seven rebounds, while Brown contributed six points and seven boards. Martinez totaled six points, five rebounds, and five steals.

UP NEXT

Eureka returns home Wednesday to host SLIAC-leading Webster at 5:30 p.m.