WINONA, Minn. – The Southwest Minnesota State women's basketball team (11-11 overall, 8-10 NSIC) dropped their eighth consecutive road game against Winona State (12-12, 9-11) 55-52 on Saturday afternoon in the McCown Gymnasium in Winona.
 
The Mustangs ended the game shooting 37.7 percent (20 of 53) but would shoot just 21.1 percent (4 of 19) from behind the arc while getting outrebounded 35-25. WSU shot 43.6 percent (24 of 55) from the field and 33.3 percent (5 of 15) from behind the arc and would record 13 assists to the five of the Mustangs. 
 
Meleah Reinhart would score a game-high 21 points on 8 of 13 shooting in the loss. Abuk Akoi would tally 16 points, four rebounds, three blocks, and two steals, and Jenna Borchers would add six points and three rebounds. Erin Baxter scored four points while grabbing three boards, and Madison Gehloff would dish two assists while grabbing three rebounds and a steal. 
 
WSU was led by Taylor Hustad and Emily Kieck, who would each score 16 points in the victory. Hustad added six rebounds, while Kieck would shoot 3 of 5 from deep while adding four rebounds, six assists, and three steals. 
 
Winona State would score the first five points of the game before an Erin Baxter layup to open the Mustang scoring with a layup. Reinhart would follow with a jumper, but WSU would score the next four points to lead 9-4 with 4:51 to go in the quarter.
 
Sam Wall and Borchers would counter, hitting back-to-back triples to take a 10-9 lead with 3:43 to go. WSU would reclaim the lead, but a Borchers and-one would reclaim the lead at 13-11 with 2:34 to go in the quarter.
 
WSU would score the next four points to take a 15-13 lead, but Akoi would get to the basket and make a layup with 30 seconds to go to even the game at 15-15 into the second quarter. 
 
Baxter opened the second quarter scoring with a layup to give SMSU a 17-15 lead, but WSU would follow with a pair of buckets to take a 19-17 lead. WSU would grow their lead to 21-18, but Reinhart would attempt to take the game into her own hands, scoring five straight points to take a 23-21 lead with 3:54 to go in the half. 
 
WSU would begin to light it up, finishing the half on a 13-1 run to go into the locker room leading 34-24. 
 
The teams would split the first 18 points of the third quarter, as WSU would hold a 43-33 lead with under three minutes to go in the quarter.
 
Reinhart would again attempt to jumpstart the offense, hitting a layup high off the glass to cut the WSU lead to 43-35 with 2:25 to go in the quarter, and then hitting a mid-range jumper with just under a minute left to cut the WSU lead to six. WSU would end the quarter with a basket to take a 45-37 lead into the final quarter. 
 
Reinhart would score the first two buckets for the Mustangs, sandwiching a WSU layup to trail 47-41. After a WSU bucket, Reinhart would knock down a pair at the line and Abuk Akoi would scoop in a layup with 4:04 to go to trail 49-45. 
 
WSU would score the next four points, but after an Akoi layup, would miss three consecutive free throws before committing a lane violation leading to an Akoi three with 1:18 to go to cut the WSU lead in half at 53-50. 
 
The Mustangs would force a turnover and get a chance to tie but would miss a three pointer on the ensuing possession. WSU would make one of two at the line to grow their lead to four, but Sadie Stelter would make a pair at the other end to bring the Mustangs within two at 54-52 with 23 seconds to go. 
 
WSU would make one of two at the line, but SMSU would miss a game-tying three to keep the game at its final score. 
 
The Mustangs are back home Thursday, Feb. 17, hosting Wayne State at 5:30 p.m. for senior night in their final home game of the season.