SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State women's basketball (5-3) got back on track with a 62-50 win over Wyoming (4-5) here Friday night at Great Southern Bank Arena. 
 
After holding Wyoming to 50 points on the night, Missouri State improved to 25-0 under Beth Cunningham when holding opponents under the 60-point mark. 
 
The third quarter ultimately decided this one as Missouri State opened the second half with a five-point advantage. However, the Cowgirls scored the final four points of the first half and came out of the break firing on all cylinders. Wyoming scored the first seven points of the second half to retake the lead. 
 
Lacy Stokes finally ended the run with a layup at the 7:41 mark of the third to tie the low-scoring affair at 30-30. It was the spark that Missouri State needed as the Lady Bears reeled off 11 straight points, including six coming courtesy of Kaemyn Bekemeier to extend the lead to nine points. Bekemeier's surge began with a triple off a ball that was punched back out following a missed shot, then she came back down and drove in for the layup, drawing contact and converting the and-1 opportunity. After four Cowgirl free throws, the Lady Bears ended the third on an 11-2 run that was capped by a Kyrah Daniels corner three off the assist from Stokes with 0:20 remaining. On the final possession of the third, the MoState defense came up with a big stop as the Lady Bears led 50-36 heading into the final period. 
 
A few minutes into the fourth quarter, Bekemeier and Stokes helped push the Missouri State lead to a game-high 18 points and forced a Wyoming timeout, but the Cowgirls didn't go away quietly. Out of the timeout, the Lady Bears were held scoreless for just under six minutes as Wyoming chipped away at the lead and made it a 56-50 game with 2:16 left to play. Paige Rocca finally put an end to the MoState scoring drought with her first points of the night on a triple with 0:45 remaining to help secure the 12-point home victory. 
 
Wyoming had the advantage over the opening five minutes before Missouri State took control with an 8-0 run that Cady Pauley capped with a triple to give the home team a five-point advantage. A Lainie Douglas layup later in the first eventually pushed the MSU lead to six points, but Wyoming scored the final points of the quarter to make it an 18-14 game after one in Springfield. 
 
Missouri State maintained the lead for the remainder of the first half, but Wyoming made it close early in the second quarter as Tess Barnes scored the first five points of the period for the Cowgirls to shrink the MSU lead to one point. Just like in the first quarter, MSU used an 8-0 surge to extend the lead to nine points. Sarah Linthacum had back-to-back layups to spark the run, followed by a Kiley Bess jumper and a Bekemeier offensive board and putback as the Lady Bears eventually carried a 28-23 lead into the intermission. 
 
The Lady Bear defense was the key in this one as they held Wyoming to 39 percent (19-49) from the field and 10 percent (2-20) from three-point range, while turning 17 Cowgirl turnovers into 22 points and collecting eight steals and four blocks. MoState also won the battle on the boards, 38-30, including a 13-6 advantage on the offensive glass. Missouri State outscored the Cowgirls 38-30 in the paint and in bench points, 24-3. 
 
Bekemeier led the way for Missouri State with a career-high 15 points (6-for-10 FG), while matching her career high mark with eight rebounds. Linthacum joined in double figures with 14 points, five rebounds and a blocked shot. Stokes had a solid outing across the board, scoring seven points in addition to pulling down eight rebounds and dishing out eight assists. All eight Lady Bears that touched the floor recorded an assist. 
 
Missouri State is back at home next week as the Lady Bears welcome Little Rock on Saturday, December 14. Tipoff is set for 1:00 p.m. and the game will stream on ESPN+.