CHICAGO, Ill. -- The Winthrop University women's basketball team outscored Chicago State 18-8 in the third quarter and led by three entering the fourth, but the Eagles couldn't withstand a late surge as the Cougars closed on a flurry to win 59-54 on Wednesday morning at the Emil and Patricia A. Jones Convocation Center. Amourie Porter powered Winthrop with 16 points and a game-high 15 rebounds, while Madison Ruff added 13 and Mya Pierfax with eleven. Chicago State's Aiyanna Culver scored 33 to swing it late.

TOP PERFORMERS 

• Amourie Porter - 16 points, 15 rebounds (6 offensive), three assists, two blocks 
• Madison Ruff - 13 points, two assists 
• Mya Pierfax - 11 points, three steals 
• Ryiah Wilson - nine points, three steals, two assists 

Game Recap
FIRST QUARTER 

• Chicago State opened with two Culver free throws at 9:39 and later a 3-pointer at 6:51 for a 5-2 edge. 
• Porter tied it 4-4 with two free throws and put Winthrop ahead 6-5 on a layup from Ruff at 6:14. 
• Pierfax knifed in a fast-break layup to pull even at 8-8 at 4:53. 
• The Cougars took a 12-10 lead to the break on Kyara Champagne's layup with :06 left.   

SECOND QUARTER 

• Ruff sank two free throws at 8:59 to tie it 12-12 before Culver answered with a three at 8:41 and the old-fashioned three-point play for 18-12. 
• Cori Lard split free throws and Porter added one to trim it to 18-14. 
• Culver hit another 3 at 6:09 and added a free throw at 5:43; Brianna Hill scored at 5:13 for 24-14. 
• Naomi Wilson and Ryiah Wilson combined for three late free throws, and Porter scored with :30 left to send Winthrop to halftime down 29-22. 

THIRD QUARTER 

• After CSU pushed it to 31-22, Porter answered with a layup at 9:09, then Ruff and Ryiah Wilson finished at the rim to cut it to 31-28. 
• Porter tied the rhythm of the game with a fast-break layup from Naomi Wilson at 6:36, and Winthrop's defense stacked steals from Ryiah Wilson and Mya Pierfax during the run. 
• Uniyah Franklin tied it 33-33 at 2:54 with a free throw; Pierfax buried Winthrop's lone 3-pointer at 2:08 for a 36-35 lead. 
• Ruff's layup with :53 left and Pierfax's transition jumper at :13 capped an 18-8 quarter for a 40-37 Eagles lead. 

FOURTH QUARTER 

• Porter's free throw and Ruff's layup within the first minute of play built a 43-37 cushion. 
• CSU answered, Kace Urlacher scored five straight and Culver's layups at 6:28 and 5:36 flipped it to 46-43 Cougars. 
• Ruff hit a free throw and Ryiah Wilson scored in traffic to keep it at 50-46 after another Culver finish. 
• Chicago State made six straight late free throws across the final 1:10, by Keona McGee and Culver, to hold off Winthrop despite Pierfax's jumper at :56 and Ruff's layup at :23, 59-54 

NEXT UP
The Eagles return to Rock Hill for the home opener on Saturday, against Newberry at 2:00 p.m.

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