Rogers State Head Women’s Basketball Coach Kyle Bent earned his 200th career victory in thrilling fashion as the Hillcats (4-10, 2-6 MIAA) took down Newman (5-8, 2-6 MIAA) in double-overtime for the 78-68 victory on Thursday.
Four Hillcats finished in double figures in the win. Bailey Kliewer led RSU with a new career-high of 25 points to go with five rebounds, three assists and two steals. Kaya Goldsby logged the Hillcats first double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds with six assists and a steal. Kamryn Estell added 10 points with six rebounds, four steals and an assist. Briana Baker-Bruce also contributed 10 points with five rebounds and two assists.
RSU was hot out of the gate as they rolled up a 13-2 run to start the game. Newman slowly began to cut into the lead trimming it to 13-6 with under three minutes in the period, but the Hillcats pushed back out to 18-6 lead going into the second quarter.
RSU continued to roll in the second quarter as they went up by their largest margin of the game at 26-10. The Jets began to come to life and eventually were able to cut the lead down to 30-21 headed into the locker room.
In the third quarter, all the momentum switched to Newman as they opened the half on a 6-0 run whittling the deficit all the way down to 30-27. From there, they managed to hold the Hillcats within striking distance as RSU was able to gain no more than a six-point lead the rest of the period and carried a slim 37-33 advantage into the final 10 minutes of regulation.
The Hillcats tried to regain the momentum and close out the game with a 6-1 run to begin the fourth quarter and go back up 43-34. However, Newman kept battling and ripped off a 10-0 run to take their first lead of the game at 49-47 with just under a minute left. A layup by Kamryn Estell on the ensuing possession kept RSU’s hopes alive and sent the game to overtime tied at 49-49.
In the first overtime period, The Jets seemed to have the Hillcats on the ropes as they took their largest lead of the game at 54-51. Fortunately, foul trouble and made free throws spoiled the Jets comeback as RSU was able to force a second overtime with the game tied at 59-59.
In the final overtime period, the Hillcats went to work and took over the game opening the five-minute period on a 7-0 run to go up 66-59. Again, free throws allowed RSU to expand its lead out to 75-66. A Bailey Kliewer layup with 13 seconds left sealed the deal as the Hillcats took home the 78-68 victory.
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