The Fulton Lady Hornets couldn't keep their hands to themselves, which ended up costing them their unbeaten status.
Aided by Fulton's 22 fouls, Kirksville made 20-of-29 free throws to spoil the Lady Hornets' home opener and hand them their first loss of the season in a 46-42 North Central Missouri Conference setback at Roger D. Davis Gymnasium on Friday night.
Fulton (7-1, 3-1 NCMC) overcame a 20-16 halftime deficit by outscoring the Lady Tigers 15-10 in the third quarter to go in front 31-30. The Lady Hornets then led by as many as five points in the fourth quarter, but Kirksville responded by knocking down 11-of-14 chances from the line over the last 8 minutes to rally for the victory.
"We were getting silly fouls and that's happened two games in a row," Fulton head coach TJ Quick said. "You think that it isn't a big deal in the first quarter, but they (fouls) are adding up.
"We're a veteran team and we can't let that happen. We've got to be smarter. You can't give 29 free opportunities (to score), especially to a great team like Kirksville. ... That's an easy fix, that's mental. You don't have to draw it up and learn it."
Senior guard Rachel Guse' directed the Lady Hornets with 14 points and six rebounds.
"That's huge for Rachel," Quick said. "In the first half she missed a couple of easy layups and that can take a toll on a player. Right out of the gate in the third quarter, she made a layup and hit a couple of 3-pointers.
"I was excited for her."
Senior guard Sloane Totta and freshman guard Dionne Vaughn contributed nine points apiece for Fulton.
Sarah Lamp countered with a game-high 16 points for Kirksville and Lauren Houston supplied 11.
Quick believes Friday night's loss will fuel the Lady Hornets in their workouts during the holiday break.
"This is going to drive us," Quick said. "We could have gone in 8-0, but we would have taken a few days off. Now we go in upset that we let one slip away and that we weren't mentally and physically ready.
"We're going to be all over the Christmas break."
Fulton returns to NCMC play when it hosts Boonville at 6 p.m. Monday, Jan. 4. The Lady Hornets just downed the Lady Pirates 56-47 last Wednesday night in Boonville.