Box Score

Score: Kennesaw State 52, Jacksonville 55
Records: Kennesaw State (7-12, 2-11), Jacksonville (4-16, 1-13)
Key Players: Stacie Jones (24 pts, 9 rebs, 3 blcks, 2 assts), Julia Rodriguez (12 pts, 11 rebs), Jah'Che Whitfield (10 pts, 9 rebs)

THE STORYLINE
Two freshmen had the best games of their career for the Kennesaw State women's basketball team, as Stacie Jones scored 20-plus points and Julia Rodriguez achieved her first-ever double-double; the rookies' performance wasn't enough to advance the Owls to the opening round against FGCU, as the Dolphins edged out KSU 55-52 in the Marietta Campus Gym. 

COACH KHADIJA HEAD QUOTES
Her thoughts on the game…
"I'm very impressed with the future of KSU basketball. You look at the stats to see Stacie Jones with 24 points and nine rebounds. She was all over the boards today. She just came out the gate, really showcasing why she was on the ASUN All-Freshman team. A kid that's been consistent for us throughout the year. Another freshman for us, Julia Rodriguez came in big. She got her first career double-double so I'm very proud of her. Last but not least, you got Bre'Lyn Snipes with six boards, three offensive and three defensive. Bre'Lyn, coming off of her ASUN Freshman of the Week, I'm very proud of her.

On preparation for next season…
"When you look at the roster, we're only losing one senior. We have five freshmen on this roster to one senior. To bring back players the calibre of Amani Johnson and Jah'Che Whitfield. One thing I know about Amani, Amani is a kid that when she does not achieve her goals, it's going to burn throughout her over the summer. The first game of the 2021-22 season, I expect a full explosion for Amani Johnson. The best things about freshmen is they become sophomores, so I'm super excited to see our freshmen mature into sophomores and I'm excited to get Gillian [Piccolino] back. She's a kid that went down in our North Florida kid; we set a 3-point single-game record with Gillian so she's going to be exciting to watch. Gabi's going to be a year maturer and we've got three freshmen that are excited to be KSU Owls."

HOW IT HAPPENED 
Very little separated the two teams in the first quarters, as the two sides were hungry to advance to the next round. Jah'Che Whitfield facilitated two Stacie Jones layups with a steal and a defensive rebound for a quick 4-0 run to start the game for the Owls. 

The Dolphins tied the game up and Whitfield hit a trifecta to take a 7-4 lead with a little less than four minutes gone in the first quarter. 

At the end of the first, Jacksonville transitioned quickly from defense to offense to score a fast-break 3-pointer and end the period 15-13 in favor of the visitors.

The Dolphins controlled play for the middle chunk of the second quarter, going on a 2:24, 7-0 scoring run to reach a 24-15 lead with 5:17 left in the half. 

Julia Rodriguez hit two jumpers in a row right after and Whitfield joined in on the action to cap a 6-0 run and cut the Owls' deficit to three. 

Gabi Legister hit a buzzer-beating layup to send the teams back to the locker room with Jacksonville leading 31-24.

The Owls came back to the court motivated to put the pieces together, and that's exactly what happened. Jones was hit in the face as she made a layup, as her and-one play highlighted a 9-0 scoring streak for the Owls. 

Whitfield hit her trademark jumper with 30 seconds left in the third quarter to pull the Owls within five; Kennesaw State was down 46-41 with 10 minutes left to play. 

KSU would not stop fighting and Jones hit two buckets in a row to start the fourth quarter and bring her team within one. 

A six-point patch for the Owls put them on, as two consecutive layups from Jones gave the Owls a 52-51 lead with 1:18 left in the game; however, Jacksonville hit a layup of their own and hit two free throws as Kennesaw State tried to stop the clock. 

The Dolphins won 55-52 and will play FGCU, the No. 24 team in the nation tomorrow at 2 p.m.

NOTES

- Stacie Jones beats her best point tally ever by five points.

- First double-double of Julia Rodriguez's career.

- Owls outscored Dolphins in the paint 36-32.

- KSU scored 15 second-chance points compared to Jacksonville's 11. 

To keep up with the latest Kennesaw State women's basketball news follow the team on Twitter @KSUOwlNation and @KSUOwlsWBB or by liking Kennesaw State University on Facebook.