The Lady Hornets steadied themselves after suffering their first loss of the season, fending off the Lady Tigers down the stretch in Friday night's 59-55 NCMC victory.
Fulton - coming off a 53-47 North Central Missouri Conference home setback to Boonville last Tuesday night - fell behind 14-10 after one quarter Friday night. However, the Lady Hornets outscored Kirksville 15-10 in the second quarter and took a 25-24 edge into halftime, then extended that lead to 44-37 to start the fourth quarter.
Fulton (6-1, 2-1 NCMC) held on for the win despite being outscored by the Lady Tigers 18-15 over the last 8 minutes.
"It couldn't have been any better," Lady Hornets head coach TJ Quick said. "... The girls were composed throughout the entire game, even in the end when Kirksville started hitting some three(-pointer)s. It was an all-around great effort.
"Any time you can get a conference win on the road, that's huge. Kirksville has a great team and played well."
Junior forward NaShayla Brandt sparked Fulton with a game-high 22 points, followed by junior guard Sloane Totta's 19. Senior forward Laurel Royer chipped in with eight points.
"The girls kept with the game plan," Quick said. "They didn't get frustrated and weren't trying to force the issue."
Audrey Wichman connected for 15 points to pace three players in double figures for Kirksville. Sarah Lamp was next with 12 points and Lauren Houston added 10.
The Lady Hornets (0-4) bowed in the junior varsity game 55-15. Freshman forward Alexus Weaver scored a team-high four points.
Fulton returns from the holiday break with a rematch at Boonville at 6 p.m. Monday, Jan. 5. The unbeaten Lady Pirates are now ranked No. 4 in Class 3 in the latest Missouri Basketball Coaches Association/MOsports.com state polls.
"I'm excited; this (Friday night's victory) is a great confidence booster," Quick said. "These teams (Kirksville and Boonville) are very similar. Sarah Lamp is a big, physical player, like (Boonville's) Morgan Edwards, and Kirksville shoots the three well and drives the lane well."