NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Leading the Eagles in scoring Saturday, Morehead State women's basketball's Gabby Crawford recorded her 13th double-figure scoring game of the year and fifth in as many games to pace the Eagles Saturday at Belmont.
The redshirt sophomore's 13th game with 10 or more points also marks her sixth game of the season with 15 or more points as she finished 6-of-14 from the field and 3-of-4 from the free throw line. Off the bench, senior Jazzmyn Elston nearly reached double-figures, adding nine points, including five from the charity stripe where she was a perfect 5-of-5.
Sophomore Tomiyah Alford and junior Ellie Jo Johnson also neared double-digits for the Eagles, adding eight points apiece with Alford finishing 4-of-5 from the floor.
Despite having four players near or above 10 points each, Morehead State succumbed to Belmont 74-49 on the final leg of a three-game road trip.
Morehead State also had three players record five boards with Crawford, sophomore Ariel Kirkwood, and redshirt senior Tyler Moore each corralling five caroms each. As a team, Morehead State grabbed 35 rebounds, including 13 on the offensive glass.
Defensively, the Eagles finished with nine steals and five blocks. Kirkwood led the thievery, swiping four steals while Johnson added a pair of steals to go along with a pair of blocks.
Morehead State returns home for the makeup of a previously postponed contest, hosting Austin Peay at Johnson Arena. The game tips at 6 p.m. ET and airs on ESPN+.
KEY MOMENTS
- Morehead State opened the game on a 6-0 run to claim the early lead, holding Belmont without a field goal attempt for nearly three minutes of action while forcing three turnovers.
- The teams would trade buckets over the remaining seven minutes of the first quarter as the Eagles led after the first intermission, 15-12.
- Morehead State grew its lead in the opening minute of the second quarter behind a traditional three-point play, extending its lead to six—the second-largest of the game.
- Belmont regained the lead midway through the second quarter using a quick 5-0 spurt. Morehead State's Elston would answer quickly, producing the game's final tie at 24-all.
- After seeing Morehead State make the first basket of the third quarter, Belmont turned up the pressure defensively, outscoring the 17-4. The Bruins held Morehead State to 1-10 from the field in the quarter with the Eagles' only points outside the Crawford jumper coming from the charity stripe.
- Trimming the lead in the final quarter, Tomiyah Alford ignited a scoring flurry of her own, scoring six of Morehead State's seven points in a 7-1 scoring stretch. She added another jumper with just over a minute remaining, tallying each of her eight points in the final period.
KEY STATS
- With her fifth consecutive game scoring 10 or more points, Gabby Crawford owns the longest streak of double-figure games for an Eagle this season, the longest since teammate Jazzmyn Elston closed the 2019-20 season with a five-game streak.
- Shooting 12-of-15 from the free throw line, Morehead State secured its 10th game of the year at or above 80 percent shooting from the free throw line. Saturday's game also marked the 17th time in 19 games this year the Eagles have attempted 15 or more free throws.
- With 17 points coming from the bench, Saturday's game marked the fourth game of the season where the Eagle bench has scored 15 or more points, doing so for the second-consecutive game.
