RedStorm women rally, push back Midway

Rio Grande Sports Information
     MIDWAY, Ky. - Kaylee Darnell equaled a season-high with 29 points, including a three-pointer with just over four minutes remaining, which gave the University of Rio Grande the lead for good in an eventual 86-74 triumph over Midway University, Wednesday night, in River States Conference women's basketball action at Marshall Gymnasium.
     The RedStorm, who maintained their No. 8 ranking in the latest NAIA Coaches' Top 25 poll released earlier in the day, improved to 8-1 overall with the win in their conference opener.
     Midway slipped to 5-5 overall and 0-1 in league play as a result of the loss.
     The Eagles erased a 16-point second quarter deficit and used a 10-0 run to start the final period for a 64-61 after a layup by Atlantis White with 7:51 left in the contest.
     Rio Grande responded with eight straight points to regain a five-point lead, but Midway responded with a conventional three-point play by Jermyra Christian with 4:28 remaining to knot the score again at 69-all.
     That's when Darnell - a senior from Wheelersburg, Ohio and the nation's third-leading scorer at 25.5 points per game - drilled the biggest bucket of the night.
     Her left-wing jumper from well beyond the three-point arc with 4:05 left to play not only put Rio in front for good, it lit the fire on an 11-0 run which the home team failed to counter.
     Fellow seniors Azyiah Williams (Ripley, OH) and Harlei Antritt (Newark, OH) also played significant roles in the RedStorm's come-from-behind victory.
     Antritt went 6-for-8 at the foul line during the late-game go-ahead scoring spurt, while Williams had 10 of her season-high 16 points in the second, including eight in the third quarter to keep Rio afloat as the Eagles began chipping away at the deficit.
     The RedStorm enjoyed their largest lead of the night, 38-22, after a pair of free throws by junior Marlee Grinstead (Albany, OH) with 3:26 left before halftime, but Midway sliced the gap to 11 points by the intermission, 44-33, and to seven, 61-54, by the close of the third period.
     The Eagles completed the comeback with their spurt to begin the fourth quarter, setting up the dramatic finish.
     Rio Grande also got 10 points from freshman Jasmine Jordan (Ashland, KY) - who swept the league's Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week awards on Monday - to go along with a team-high nine rebounds and five steals.
     Grinstead and Williams also had five assists each, while Antritt added a pair of blocked shots.
     The RedStorm survived 21 turnovers - 12 of which helped to aid Midway's second half comeback - by shooting 41 percent overall (31-for-75), 75 percent at the foul line (21-for-28) and enjoying a 50-38 rebounding edge.
     Midway shot even better, going 28-for-61 (45.9%) overall, but was done in by 27 turnovers - nearly double their per game season average and 16 of which helped Rio build its first half lead.
     The RedStorm scored 30 points off of the Eagles' miscues.
     Christian scored a career-high 25 points to go along with seven rebounds and a team-best three steals in a losing cause. She fouled out with just under 3-1/2 minutes remaining.
     White added a career-best 18 points for Midway, while Kiera Couch had 10 points off the bench.
     A'Lyrica Hughes, the Eagles' leading scorer entering the contest at 15.0 ppg, was limited to just eight points. She also had six rebounds, three assists and three steals.
     Rio Grande will return to action against Morningside (Iowa) University as part of the Puerto Rico Clasico, next Tuesday, at 11 a.m. EST, in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
     The Mustangs are among the schools receiving votes in the latest Top 25 poll.