EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Jacksonville State's women's team scored the first 20 points of the fourth quarter to eventually put away a stingy Southern Illinois Edwardsville opponent on the road Monday afternoon as JSU won its final road game of the regular season.
 
The Gamecocks (14-7, 11-6 Ohio Valley Conference) were in a back-and-forth bout with the home Cougars (6-17, 3-15) through three quarters before finally finding a rhythm late in a 61-47 win. After beating SIUE by 44 at home just nine days prior, the Gamecocks' 11th league win, that moves them into a tie for fourth-place in the conference standings with Tennessee Tech, didn't come easy.
 
Fresh off a nail-biting victory at Tennessee State on Saturday, JSU would see another fourth-quarter rally behind a trio of Gamecocks in double figures. Junior Yamia Johnson led the way with 14 points, including several fourth-quarter threes to break the game open, followed by Imari Martin with 13 and Jessie Day who added 12 points. Johnson tallied her third double-double of the season with 11 boards to finish second on the team behind Kennedy Gavin with 12.
 
Before the final period, it was a rough day offensively for JSU who shot just 30-percent from the field (15-50) through the opening 30 minutes. The two sides failed to reach double digits in the first, both deadlocked at 9-9. In the second, the score was even at 19-19 midway through before JSU used a 9-0 run which included a Taylor Hawks triple, to gain some separation.
 
SIUE slowly chipped away at the deficit in the third, cutting it to 34-32 at one point before Day and Kyra Williams added two scores to push JSU back ahead by six. The Cougars would mount an 8-0 stretch of the own in the final three minutes, culminating in a last-second layup at the horn to go ahead 40-38 entering the final quarter.
 
Not wanting to fall victim to a team it dominated less than two weeks ago, opened the final frame with a completely different energy. Day buried an early three to halt the SIUE momentum and put JSU back in front, but the charge didn't stop there. Nekiyah Thompson converted a pair of free throws and Johnson hit two three-pointers in a short span and the lead was suddenly double digits with under five to play. Martin added a triple and a driving layup to the run while Gavin had an inside bucket and before the Cougars could turn around JSU had reeled off 20-straight points to storm back ahead.
 
SIUE's first points came with 1:32 left in the game, and the margin was 15 by then. JSU ended with 23 points in the final period to win 61-47.
 
JSU now prepares for the final weekend of the regular season where the Gamecocks will host Murray State on Thursday, Feb. 25, and Austin Peay on Saturday, Feb. 27. Saturday will be Senior Day for the Gamecocks.