By: Paxton Ritchie
CSC Sports Information Director
PUEBLO, Colo. – Led by 23 points from All-American Alisha Little, CSU Pueblo led for the final 33 minutes of game time and defeated Chadron State women's basketball 72-61 at Massari Arena in Thursday night RMAC hoops.
Kylie Krise finished with 11 points and seven rebounds to lead Chadron State in both categories. Kyra Tanabe finished with nine points as she and Krise each hit three three-pointers apiece for the Eagles.
The Eagles shot 29.9 percent from the field and 29.4 percent from three. They continued to shoot well at the free-throw line, making 11 of 12 attempts for a percentage of 91.7.
CSU Pueblo, which had two other scorers in double figures with Landri Hudson's 13 and Tomia Johnson's 11, shot 36.8 percent from the floor, 26.9 percent from three and 74 percent from the line.
Chadron State competed on the boards, outrebounding CSU Pueblo 52-36 and grabbing 21 offensive rebounds as a team. Behind Krise's seven, the Eagles got six rebounds apiece from Camren Morris and Ashayla Powers, who played just 14 minutes and scored four points before fouling out.
The Eagles also enjoyed a return to the court from Liberty Line, who made 23 starts for Chadron State last season but had been out all year due to injury prior to Thursday's game. Line played 11 minutes and finished with five points on 2-for-6 shooting and five rebounds.
Chadron struck first on a three by Camren Morris, who scored seven of CSC's first nine points as the visitors built an early 9-8 lead in the first four minutes of game time. The two teams continued to battle throughout the period as the scoring margin was never more than three points in either direction during the opening quarter.
In the second period, Pueblo began to take control by feeding Little and forcing turnovers. The Eagles committed 22 turnovers in the game, 14 of which came in the first half. CSU Pueblo outscored Chadron State 19-10 in the second period on its way to a 39-27 lead at halftime.
The Eagles came out with urgency in the second half, beginning on an 8-2 run featuring back-to-back three-pointers by Krise. The ThunderWolves responded immediately, however, reeling off a 12-1 run over five minutes of game time before CSC snapped the streak with a backdoor cut feed from McKenzi Petersen to Liberty Line for a layup.
CSU Pueblo closed the third period with another 10-3 run, including three made three-pointers in four attempts, to lead 63-43 after three quarters. The Eagles did outscore CSU Pueblo 18-9 over the final period, but it wasn't enough to overcome the deficit.
The Eagles are 2-7 overall and 1-2 in RMAC play. They will take the court next against UCCS (4-4, 2-1 RMAC) on Saturday at 1 p.m. UCCS fell to Black Hills State 72-44 on Thursday.
Chadron State— Kylie Krise 11, Kyra Tanabe 9, Camren Morris 8, Jordyn Stokes 6, Tyra Eriksson 6, Liberty Line 5, Ashayla Powers 4, Malorie Byrne 4, McKenzi Petersen 4, Megan Counts 2, Bati Assefa 2. Totals: 20-67 FG, 10-34 3PT, 11-12 FT. 61 points, 52 rebounds, 11 assists, 22 turnovers.