Saturday afternoon at the Hinkhouse Center was full of some action packed basketball when the Cottey Comets took on the Columbia Cougars. In the end, the Cougars would take the 67-58 victory.

Cottey did start off strong in the first half, powered by 6 first quarter points by Akyria James. James' two 3's carried the Comets to a 15-13 lead after the first frame of play. In the 2nd quarter, it was Senior Sarah Hunt who would put 9 points on the board from three treys. Combined with another 5 points from James, Cottey took a 35-30 lead into halftime.

The Cougars began their comeback early in the 2nd half, scoring the first nine points on a 9-0 run. AK James would stop the run with a three-pointer to make it a one point contest before making a layup to take the lead. Columbia would take a 45-42 lead into the final frame, which was quickly cut to a one point contest on a Sarah Hunt bucket. That is when the foul trouble started to take over. Claudia Hadlock would foul out early the final quarter, while Dally Coulter would also get to 4 personal fouls, as the Cougars took advantage of their 31 free throw attempts, making 26 in the game. Cottey would convert on 10 of 11 free throws in the contest.

Sarah Hunt would lead all scorers with 23, while Akyria James would finish just behind with 21. Hunt and Leslie Chalmers each grabbed 5 boards for Cottey, while Hunt and Claudia Hadlock had 2 assists apiece. 

Cottey falls to 8-4 Overall, 4-2 in American Midwest Conference play. After winter break, the Comets will return to play at Home on January 7th for a 5:30pm tip-off against William Woods.