KENNESAW, Ga. - A second-half rally from Kennesaw State (2-4) highlighted a hard-fought defeat to the Chattanooga Mocs (7-1), 49-43 Wednesday night inside the KSU Convocation Center.
KSU held the 2023 NCAA Division I women's tournament participant Mocs to a season-low 49 points, marking the fourth-consecutive opponent the Owls have held to their season-low point total.
Kyndall Golden was stellar on the defensive side for Kennesaw State, blocking four Moc shots and collecting a career-high 13 rebounds.
Fellow senior
Carly Hooks once again delivered for the Owls with her second-consecutive 20-point game with two blocks and shooting 83.3% from the free-throw line.
Sophia Rueppell continued her magic from beyond the arc, scoring the first points for KSU. UTC got out to an early lead but an 8-0 run for the Owls - in addition to a scoring drought of over four minutes for the Mocs - turned the tide in favor of the home team.
Hooks tallied six first quarter points to help the Owls secure an 11-10 advantage after the first 10 minutes.
Golden extended her Atlantic Sun Conference-leading block total to 11 after shutting down two UTC shots in the first quarter. Chattanooga did not score inside the paint in the period and were out-rebounded by KSU.
Hooks also had two blocks in the first half, tying her single-game career-high. Her second block tied former Owl
Gillian Piccolino for ninth on the Kennesaw State Division I career blocks list with 45.
Junior
Prencis Harden led the Owls with four second-quarter points.
Golden ended the second quarter with 10 rebounds, tying her single-game career high set on Saturday in the Owls' 57-43 win over Florida Atlantic. UTC took a 30-18 lead into the half.
Hooks acquired her third double-digit scoring game of the season and 15th of her KSU career in the third quarter.
With just over three minutes remaining in the period, Golden collected her 11th rebound for a new career-best.
Like the first quarter, the first points for Kennesaw State in the fourth came in the form of a three, this time from Hooks.
The KSU defense caught fire in the final frame, forcing a UTC scoreless drought of over four minutes that allowed the offense to cut the Moc lead to six, 44-38, with 4:27 remaining.
An incredible recovery play from
Kailyn Fields further cut into the deficit, 44-40.
A late trey from the Mocs helped seal the win for the Tennessee foe, 49-43.
The defeat was the Owls' first loss at home since Feb. 23 and only the second loss in the last eight home contests.
The Black and Gold return to the court to face Coastal Georgia on Saturday, Dec. 2 approximately 45 minutes after the conclusion of KSU men's basketball's 1:00 p.m. game against Georgia State. Both games will be inside the KSU Convocation Center and will be broadcast on ESPN+. Fans can purchase tickets
here.
