Crowder Falls After Strong First Half Against #9 State Fair

The Roughriders battled until the final buzzer Saturday afternoon at Bob Sneller Gymnasium, but a second-half surge by #9 State Fair Community College proved to be the difference in a 79-71 loss.

Crowder came out strong in front of the home crowd in Neosho, building momentum early and taking a 20-15 lead after the first quarter. The Roughriders extended that advantage to 43-33 at halftime, fueled by balanced scoring and active hands on the defensive end.

Lexie Henry paced Crowder with 20 points, knocking down three shots from beyond the arc while adding four rebounds and three assists. Aubri Wilson contributed 14 points, dished out a team-high seven assists, while adding five rebounds and four steals. Barbara Perandini chipped in 11 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals. Abbey Green anchored the effort inside with nine rebounds to go along with two blocks.

State Fair used a 27-point third quarter to flip the script, outscoring Crowder 27-14 in the period to erase the halftime deficit and seize control. Despite multiple pushes from the Roughriders in the fourth, the visitors maintained their composure and closed out the eight-point win.

Crowder finished the contest shooting 39.4 percent from the floor and connected on nine three-pointers. The Roughriders also forced 20 turnovers, but State Fair held a 50-38 rebounding advantage that proved pivotal down the stretch.

Crowder is 17-10 (4-6 Region 16) heading into the final week of the regular season.  The Roughriders will travel to Mineral Area on Wednesday for a 5:00 PM game.  They will return home on Saturday to take on #19 Three Rivers at 2:00 PM on Sophomore Day.