ST. LOUIS – Junior guard Tionne Taylor knocked down a career-high seven 3-pointers to propel Missouri Baptist Women's Basketball team to a 71-62 win over University of Health Sciences & Pharmacy (5-3, 1-2 AMC) on Thursday. Aided by Taylor's play from beyond the arc, the Spartans also surpassed their season high in threes with 14 on the night.
 
The win moves Missouri Baptist back to .500 in conference (2-2) and 6-4 overall. Meanwhile, UHSP dropped to 5-3, 1-2 AMC.
 
After the teams traded baskets in the earlygoing and the game was knotted at 8-all, Missouri Baptist broke away with an 11-3 run and never relinquished the lead. During MoBap's run, the threes began to flow for the Spartans converting on their first five attempts – two apiece from guards Tionne Taylor and Taylor Norris, and one from Kenzie Burt. MBU took a 24-14 lead into the second after collecting 75% of its points from behind the arc.
 
The first points of the game for UHSP's Grace Beyer – the NAIA's leading scorer at 29.6 ppg – didn't come until the 4:24 mark in the first period. Beyer was held without a field goal and to just one shot attempt in the opening quarter.
 
The Eutectics' star sophomore found a bit of rhythm in the second scoring nine and helped UHSP win the quarter, 17-16. Still, the Spartans went into halftime with a comfortable nine-point lead. Tionne Taylor did a lot of her damage in the first half shooting 5-of-7 from long range for a team-high 15 points at the break.
 
Health Sciences & Pharmacy lingered around keeping within the 10-point range and made back-to-back threes in the final minute of the third go slash the Spartans' lead to single digits. MBU carried over a 53-46 advantage into fourth.
 
With another 3-pointer to open the fourth, UHSP's Faith Oliver cut the lead to 53-49 at the 8:20 mark, but that was as close as they'd get. The Spartans' leading scorer – Tionne Taylor – even fouled out with 2:48 remaining. MBU didn't miss a beat. Upon exiting the game, Taylor's final stat line included a season-high 23 points, 7-of-11 from 3-point range, 2-for-2 from the free-throw line and 4 rebounds.
 
Sophomore guard Taylor Norris recorded her first career double-double posting 11 points, a career-high 10 assists and a team-high 3 steals.
 
Other notable performances included sophomores Alexis Allstun and Kenzie Burt, who scored 8 points apiece and combined for 9 rebounds, as well as Joelle Atkins. The senior center, who made her third start this season, finished with 6 points including a 4-for-4 mark from the charity stripe, a career-best 14 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks.
 
The Spartans will finish up their three-game week on Saturday at Central Baptist College (5-0, 0-0) for the Mustangs' AMC opener.