ST. LOUIS - Missouri Baptist University picked up their first win of the 2024-25 season with a home AMC victory over Hannibal-LaGrange, marking the first win of Coach Edgar Mendez's tenure as a Spartan.

Early in the contest the Spartans grabbed a slim lead over the Trojans and went into the second quarter up 13-8. Kayleigh Winch and Sophia Horton each had four points in the first frame.

Just three minutes into the second quarter, the Spartans held a 12 point lead, but that diminished over time as HLGU cut the MBU lead to just four points with four minutes left before halftime.

The Spartans closed out the first half on a 13-2 run to give them a 33-18 lead following a three point shooting foul at the buzzer.

At the break Horton and Winch each had nine points, and Mariana Cubero had quite the half picking up 10 rebounds and five points. Missouri Baptist did a tremendous job in the first half capitalizing on the Trojans' mistakes as they had 16 points off turnovers and 10 fast break points. 

In the third quarter, the Spartans extended their lead to 21 points as they outscored HLGU 14-8.

The end of the third quarter and the start of the fourth quarter was not typical for the Spartans as they ran into a scoring drought, but the closest the Trojans got was within 14 points in the final frame. The Spartans ended up extending their lead back to 20 before the end of the contest as they went on to win 63-43.

Horton and Winch finished the game as the leading scorers for the Spartans with 18 and 15, respectively. Cubero continued her success on the boards as she racked up 14 throughout the game.

Anderson had a terrific game for Missouri Baptist working hard defensively and picking up eight points and seven rebounds throughout the contest. 

Jenna Plymale, Audrey Payne, Riley Jansen, Cara Kalista, Chardonnay Jones, and Anderson all picked up huge minutes for the Spartans in the win over Hannibal-LaGrange.

As a whole, the Spartans finished the game shooting 35.6% from the field and they continued to get points off turnovers and win the paint battle as they outscored the Trojans 26-20.

The victory marks the first win of the season for the Spartans, and the first win for Coach Mendez as a Spartan.

Spartan Stat Leaders

Points: Horton (18)

Rebounds: Cubero (14)

Assists: Aliyah Williams, Anderson (3)

Steals: Cubero, Williams (3)

Records

Missouri Baptist: 1-5 (1-1 AMC)

Hannibal-LaGrange: 3-5 (0-2 AMC)

Next Game

The Spartans have an exhibition contest next Tuesday Nov. 26 at Southwest Baptist then they will hit the road for another AMC matchup against Mission on Thursday Dec. 5 at 5:30 PM.