CHANUTE, Kan. – The Neosho women routed Bethel College 81-51 to close out a busy first half that included 14 games in just over 1 month. The Panthers end the first semester 8-6 and winners of 3 of their final 4 games with the lone loss coming on the road at No. 2 Hutchinson.
                                
The Panthers started slowly against Threshers (0-5) and trailed 7-6 with 13 minutes to play in the first half. Neosho found its stride at after falling behind and went on a 30-5 run to pull away and grab control of the game.
 
Freshman Autumn Lipscomb helped fuel the run as she connected on 4-5 from beyond the 3-point line and dished out 3 assists in the run accounting for 18 points over that stretch. She finished the first half with 14 points and 5 assists as the Panthers led 48-18 at the break.
 
The Panthers opened a 40 point lead as Hailey Mayfield scored the first 10 points of the second half as Neosho made a 10-0 run.
 
The lead would stay in the mid 30's for the remainder of the second half before a small run late pulled the Threshers within 30.
 
Mayfield finished with a career high 17 points to lead the Panthers while also grabbing 6 rebounds. Autumn Lipscomb added 16 points and a career best 6 assists.
 
Morgan Finley and Makayla Bell each finished with 10 points which was a career best for each of them. Finley also added a career high 4 assists in the win.
 
Despite scoring just two points, Hannah Jones had a full stat sheet grabbing 4 rebounds while dishing out a career high 5 assists and blocking 5 shots.
 
The 30 point win is the largest margin of victory under head coach JJ Davis and is the largest margin since a 30 point win over Iowa Lakes Community College to open the 2012-13 season.
 
The Panthers will now have a little over a month to get healthy and prepare for Jayhawk Conference play. After a short break for Christmas, the Panthers will return to the court January 6 at Bacone College and January 7 at Cottey College. They will open conference play January 10 when they host rival Allen Community Colleg.