JORDAN SPARKS EAGLES TO 8TH NJCAA TITLE

PORT HURON, Mich. - The Kirkwood women's basketball team dominated its opponents in the fourth quarter all season this year.

The Eagles did it again Saturday night and captured the national title.

The top-ranked Eagles rallied for a 49-44 victory over Morton College to claim its eighth NJCAA Division II championship under Coach Kim Muhl.

Kirkwood trailed, 36-29, entering the fourth period against the No. 1 defensive team in the country, but sophomore Tasia Jordan scored 15 straight points for the Eagles in that final stanza to lift her team into a 46-38 lead with 2:36 remaining.

Morton hit consecutive 3-pointers to pull within 46-44 with 1:41 left, but Morton did not score again and the Eagles hit three free throws to clinch the crown. Kirkwood outscored Morton, 20-8, in the final period.

Jordan scored 16 points in just 15 minutes of action and was named the tournament MVP. Karsyn Stratton and Tatiana Hodges-Johnson netted 11points apiece for the Eagles. Ashley Tull snared 16 rebounds and contributed nine points.

Tull and Kortney Drake joined Jordan on the all-tournament team.

Kirkwood finished the season with a sparkling 36-1 record. Morton, the No. 7 seed, upended No. 2 seed Johnson County and No. 3 seed Baltimore County-Essex on its way to the finals at the SC4 Fieldhouse.