Sophomore day brought a capacity crowd to Ben Allen Field House and the women's basketball team didn't disappoint as they overcame a 12-point halftime deficit and defeated the Fort Scott Greyhounds 81-66.
 
It was an emotional day from the start as nine sophomores knew they would be playing in their final regular season home game Saturday afternoon.
 
Highland could not get their offense going in the first two quarters and Fort Scott took advantage scoring 22 second quarter points and taking a 37-25 lead into the locker room.
 
A three pointer by Blaize Burgess just :30 seconds into the third quarter got things rolling for Highland. A Mariane Carvalho jumper and a Szonja Vukov steal and layup cut the Greyhound lead to seven just 1:27 into the third.
 
Niccolly Ramalho knocked down a three pointer and Carvalho scored on a fast break layup and the Fort Scott lead was down to two. Mariane Carvalho drained a deep three pointer and gave Highland the lead with 5:50 left in the third quarter, a lead they would not give back. Highland outscored the Greyhounds 29-12 in the third quarter and took a 54-49 lead into the fourth quarter.
 
The third quarter took all the gas from the Greyhounds and Highland took advantage outscoring them 27-17 to seal the win 81-66, their 26^th victory of the year.
 
 "One possession at a time and it all starts with defense," commented Head Coach BJ Smith when asked what his message was at halftime.
 
His message was clear as Highland forced 14 Greyhound turnovers in the second half and held them to just 38% shooting.
 
Jameka Dowell led all scorers with 25 points. Mariane Carvalho added 21 points and dished out five assists. Blaize Burgess went 4-7 from behind the arc and finished with 15 points. Szonja Vukov recorded nine points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals.
 
Highland improved to 26-3 on the year, 5-2 in KJCCC and 9-2 in Region VI play. They will travel to Parsons, KS to take on the Labette Cardinals on Wednesday, March 1^st at 5:30pm.