CHICAGO — The Chicago State women's basketball team (4-18, 3-10 WAC) dropped its matchup with Stephen F. Austin, 73-49, Wednesday at the Jones Convocation Center.
Janiah Newell powered the Cougars with a team-high 18 points, while Quentarra Mitchell scored seven points. Kyjai Miles added six, and Aaliyah Collins dropped in five. As a team, the Cougars out rebounded the Ladyjacks, but SFA's 23 forced turnovers sealed the win.
"We have to take care of the ball," head coach Tiffany Sardin said. "This team has great length and size. It's the number-one team in the league, but we have to chip away and build on momentum better. But I do like how we kept fighting."
In the first quarter, the Cougars came out with force, forcing a slew of early turnovers in a competitive first five minutes highlighted by a Mitchell three for CSU. But the Ladyjacks settled in, led by Aiyana Johnson, and SFA led, 15-8 at the 6:58 mark.
CSU then kicked into a higher gear, mustering a 7-0 run to tie the game at 15 before SFA closed on a 6-0 run to end the first quarter leading, 21-15.
In quarter two, Newell continued to guide the Cougars' offense, but SFA, the WAC's top team, continued a hard-pressing defense that kept Chicago State off-kilter.
With 3:00 to halftime, the Ladyjacks led, 30-20. Senior Stephanie Visscher then ignited a spurt, hitting two layups to bring SFA to a 12-point lead. Newell and Miiles each nailed layups to bring the Cougars to within 10, as CSU trailed, 39-29, at the break.
In the third quarter, Mitchell opened with a long two, but then the Ladyjacks surged to a 48-31 lead by the five-minute mark. Nafatoumata Haidara entered with 4:46 left in the third and delivered a quality stretch, including a quick score, and Jazmine Covington drilled two shots, but the Ladyjacks kept firing away, shooting 50 percent from the floor on the night. At the end of the quarter, SFA led, 58-41.
The lead expanded to 20 by the 7:49 mark of the fourth quarter, and SFA cruised to its 14th consecutive win, a 73-49 victory in Chicago.
The Cougars next hit the road to Stephenville, Texas, where they'll face Tarleton at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday.
"We now focus on Tarleton," Sardin said. "We have to take care of the ball and shoot free throws better."
The Cougars took down the Texans 58-48, on Feb. 5 in Chicago.
About Chicago State
Chicago State University Athletics is comprised of 15 intercollegiate teams involving over 150 student-athletes that compete in basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and volleyball. CSU held memberships in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and NCAA Division II before transitioning to NCAA Division I in 1994. Melvin Bland was the first CSU student-athlete to gain NAIA All-American status in 1974 as a wrestler. Fred Evans became the first black swimmer ever to win a national championship in 1975. In 1991, the Chicago State women's tennis team became the first all-black college team to amass an unbeaten season at the NCAA level. CSU's women's basketball team earned a spot in the 2011 Women's Basketball Invitational and CSU's men's basketball team won the 2013 Great West Conference Tournament title, also making an appearance in the CollegeInside.com Postseason Tournament (CIT). The Men's Outdoor Track & Field 4x100-Meter Relay team were 2019 Honorable Mention All-Americans and WAC Champions. Their feat marked the first time the Chicago State's men's track & field program was represented at the national meet. Chicago State volleyball recorded a historic season in 2021, with Yanlis Feliz becoming CSU's first volleyball All-American and head coach Tony Trifonov earning selection as WAC Coach of the Year.
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