BROWNWOOD, Texas – University of Mary Hardin-Baylor women's basketball took down Howard Payne University on the road in an 83-59 victory Thursday evening in Brownwood. The Cru improved to 13-6 on the season and 2-1 in American Southwest Conference play with the victory. The Yellow Jackets fall to 4-16 overall and 0-4 in league play.
 
The Cru opened the game with a 13-0 run, anchored by five points from Katelen Brooks and four from Adyson James. Madison Clay broke UMHB's streak with a jumper for two with 4:49 left in the first quarter. Amillion Fowler and Jaycie Brisco responded with back-to-back three-pointers, followed by two more from Brooks, making it a 21-2 game. James closed out the first quarter with a layup, putting the Cru ahead 26-9 going into the second.
 
The Yellow Jackets opened the second quarter scoring with a Kaley Nicholson three-pointer. Katelen Brooks answered with a jumper to add two, making it a 28-12 game. Karlee Cronk put up a pair of two-pointers along with one from Adyson James with 4:47 left in the half to remain ahead 34-17. At the 3:37 mark, Rachel Okoye scored in back-to-back possessions to extend the Cru's lead by four. James closed out the half with another jumper, going into halftime with a score of 45-25.
 
Adyson James led the Cru in points in the first half with 10, followed by Katelen Brooks who added nine. Rachel Okoye tallied six rebounds while James and Brooks each added one block. UMHB added 21 rebounds in total with a field goal percentage of 55.6%.
 
Katelen Brooks broke into the second half with a jumper from the paint off an assist from Rachel Okoye. At 7:19, Okoye added another assist to Karlee Cronk for two points, making it a 52-29 game. Cronk scored two again in the following possession after an offensive rebound at 6:21. Jaycie Brisco closed out the third quarter scoring with a layup to finish the period with a 65-39 score.
 
The Cru's first five points of the fourth quarter were free throws, courtesy of Adyson James and Sofia George. Karlee Cronk and George each added two points, both assisted by Mikyla Bachert making it a 74-44 game at 6:50. In the final minutes, the Yellow Jackets went on a five-point run to cut into the Cru's lead, but UMHB took the 83-59 victory.
 
Karlee Cronk was the Cru's leading scorer with 14 points on the night, followed by Rachel Okoye with 13, along with Adyson James and Katelen Brooks adding 11 of their own. UMHB had a field goal percentage of 54.7% while the Yellow Jackets only shot 37.5%. Okoye led defensively with eight rebounds with Cronk following behind with seven. As a team, the Cru tallied 13 steals and four blocked shots.
 
UMHB returns to action in Abilene on Saturday, February 1^st in a 1:00 PM contest against Hardin-Simmons University.