Part two of the women’s basketball Wagon Wheel took place at Kent State. For the second time this year, the University of Akron (15-12, 9-7 Mid American Conference) took down Kent State (5-21, 2-14 MAC), 70-60.

At the end of the first half, Akron had a 15-point lead. They ended the third quarter only up by five.

The Zips were held scoreless until there were 4:41 left on the clock. By this time they were only up by four, having scored only nine points.

The Flashes had an outstanding third quarter. Going into the fourth, it looked as though they were going to fight back and take the game.

At the beginning of the third quarter, sophomore forward Jordan Korinek was one-of-five from the field with two points. By the the end of the third quarter, she had 12 points and the Flashes were only trailing 44-41. After being held scoreless in the second, junior guard Larissa Lurken also added four points to the mix.

As the fourth quarter rolled around though, it was a whole different story. After Akron sophomore DiAndra Gibson sank a three-pointer, it was all but over for the Flashes. Gibson ended the game with 14 points and six rebounds. She finished going five-for-eight from the field, and 4-7 from beyond the three-point line.

Turnovers were another thing that hurt Kent State in this game. The Flashes had 24 turnovers compared to Akron’s 19. Akron had 31 points off of their 24 turnovers. Of the 24 turnovers for the Flashes, the Zips had 13 of them.

At the end of the second quarter, Akron was in complete control of the game. They were shooting almost 60 percent from the field and 50 percent from three-point territory. Akron was also controlling the rebounding game, beating the Flashes 22-11. The Zips ended up winning the rebounding game 35-28.

Four Akron players scored in double figures. Gibson finished the game with 14, junior Hannah Plybon contributed 17 points and six rebounds, senior Anita Brown pitched in 16 points and added five steals and sophomore Greta Burry added 11 points.  

For Kent State, only six players had total score, with two of them in double digits. Lurken had a game-high 19 points, nine of them coming in the first quarter. Leading scorer Korinek had 19 and a game-high eight rebounds.

The next challenge for the Flashes comes Wednesday, as they take on the University of Miami (OH). For the Flashes’ seniors, this will be their last home game. Tip-off is at 7 p.m.

Eric Pitcher is a sports reporter for The Kent Stater. Contact him at [email protected].