ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The Harris-Stowe State University women's basketball team was back on the court this evening when they played host to the Hannibal-LaGrange (Mo.) University Trojans in an AMC matchup. The Hornets, who picked up their first win of the season on Saturday against William Woods, were able to extend their winning streak to two as they defeated the Trojans by a final score of 61-53 to improve to 2-3 on the season and 2-0 in the American Midwest Conference. With the loss, Hannibal-LaGrange falls to 1-8 on the year and 0-3 in the AMC.

The Hornets came out in the first quarter and found themselves trailing 8-2 in the first couple minutes of the game. They quickly battled back and were able to tie the score at eight, but found themselves trailing 11-8 at the end of the frame. Harris-Stowe picked it up to start the second and took their first lead of the game with eight minutes left in the half. The game remained close as the quarter progressed but ultimately the Hornets would take a 28-24 lead into the locker room.

The Hornets carried over their momentum into the second half and quickly extended their lead to 10. The Trojans battled back and were able to cut the lead to one, but another run from the Hornets put them up 43-38 heading into the fourth. The Hornets quickly extended their lead to eight to start the fourth and never looked back as they held off the Trojans down the stretch to pick up their second straight win.

The Hornets went 23-for-56 (41.07%) from the floor and 1-for-12 (8.33%) from behind the arc. They were outrebounded 45-35 but only turned the ball over 14 times compared to 17 turnovers from the Trojans.

Surina Finnie (JR/Memphis, Tenn.) led the way for the Hornets as she finished with a game high 17 points. In addition to Finnie, Taia Smith (JR/Grand Rapids, Mich.) finished with 14 points and a team high seven rebounds, while Ronne'zje Elliot (JR/Louisville, Ky.) finished with 11 points to round out the top performers for the Hornets.

The Hornets will return to the court on Thursday, January 14th when they play host to the Williams Baptist (Ark.) University Eagles in an AMC matchup. The game is set to tip-off at 5:30 p.m. in the Emerson Performance Center. No spectators will be allowed but live video and stats will be provided.