For the first time in the school’s history, Kent State (5-20, 2-13 Mid-American Conference) has lost to Ohio University (22-4, 14-1 MAC) four times in a row after losing 86-52 on the road.

The Bobcats scored first after the opening tip and from then on they never looked back. The Flashes trailed the Bobcats 47-29 at the end of the first half. Ohio was dominant inside the paint and it showed, as they scored 32 of their 47 points from inside the paint. The Bobcats finished with 44 points inside of the paint.

Coming out of halftime it was still all Ohio basketball as they went on a quick 10-0 run to start the second half, until the redshirt freshman guard Tyra James buried two foul shots to stop the Bobcats run.

James struggled from the field tonight as she only shot 30 percent from the field and scored nine points.

Despite the tough loss, sophomore forward Jordan Korinek had an outstanding game scoring a team-high 18 points and shooting 83 percent from the field.

Junior forward Chelsi Watson added 11 points and a team-high seven rebounds.

For Ohio it was their ability to dish out assists and grab rebounds on both sides of the floor. The Bobcats dished out 17 assists. They out-rebounded the Flashes 48-35, including 17 coming on the offensive end of the floor.

Senior guard Kiyanna Black was the leader on the floor with 19 points, 12 of them coming from behind the arc. She wasn’t alone, as three of her teammates scored in double digits as well. As a whole the Bobcats shot 49 percent from the field.

Part two of the Wagon Wheel challenge is this Saturday as the Flashes take on Akron at home. Tip-off is at 2 p.m.

Eric Pitcher is a sports reporter for The Kent Stater. Contact him at [email protected].