LAS VEGAS, N.M. -- January 15, 2016 -- Sophomore post Maka Daysh dominated the first quarter, scoring 13 of the Eagles' 18 unanswered points, and senior forward Stephanie Knowles engineered a 12-2 run in the fourth to put the game away for the Chadron State College women at New Mexico Highlands tonight in Las Vegas. CSC won 85-67, improving to 4-10 (4-6 RMAC) while Highlands falls to 2-13 (0-10 RMAC) on the year.

Both Daysh's 29 points and Knowles' 28 were new career-highs, and the pair were distantly the top two scorers in the game. Highlands center Michelle Traynham led her team with 14.

Knowles, meanwhile, flirted with history as her eight rebounds and eight assists nearly earned a triple-double. In a senior season littered with standout performances, the game was perhaps her finest with two blocked shots and three steals on the defensive end.

Daysh was nearly perfect with 12-of-13 shooting, while Knowles hit 80.0% of her shots from the field (12 of 15).

Kayla Mathews also had one of her better performances, knocking down two of five three-pointers with 4-of-4 shots from the free-throw line. The Aussie point guard had her best assist-to-turnover ratio of the season at 2.0.

The Cowgirls jumped out to a 7-3 lead early on, partly owing to a Traynham three. However the Eagles were able to keep her in check as she missed her next three attempts. Meanwhile, Daysh went to work hitting five shots in a row in the paint, plus three free throws, all within a span of 7:38. Including her contribution, a Mathews trey, and a Knowles layup, CSC went for 18 straight to dominate the first quarter going up 21-7. The Eagle defense held the home team to 4-of-15 shooting in the first stanza.

Again Traynham found her rhythm in the third, draining three from long range within a span of 2:30. NMHU's Giulia Simioni added five in the opening moments of the fourth to cut the Eagle lead to 61-54.

The Eagles responded brilliantly. Knowles contributed either a field goal or an assist on the next six CSC scoring possessions, coming on eight trips down the floor. She also blocked a Simioni shot attempt and nabbed a steal in the series. After pushing the lead to 73-56, Chadron State hit 6-of-6 from the charity stripe down the stretch to seal the 18-point win.

Tomorrow night at 5:30 p.m., the Eagle women will try to complete the road sweep at Western New Mexico, following several hours on the bus. The Mustangs are tied with CSC at 4-6 in the conference after dropping a 59-48 decision to Regis, who the Eagles defeated at home in December.