ASHLAND - The No. 5 seed Fulton Lady Hornets were outscored 17-4 in the first quarter and fell to No. 5 Hickman 37-26 in the third-place game of the Southern Boone Classic on Saturday afternoon.
Fulton trailed 21-10 at halftime and 28-15 after three quarters in dropping to 4-14 on the season.
Junior guard Kayanna Gaines posted a game-high 13 points to pace the Lady Hornets, who only had three players score. Junior forward Sydney Hedgpath contributed eight points and sophomore guard Kiah Pittman was next with five points.
"Hickman was more aggressive than what we were and they have quick guards," Fulton head coach Dillan Brunk said. "That was affecting us up and down the court."
Ella Rogers topped Hickman with 11 points.
On Friday, Gaines hit five 3-pointers in breaking out for a game-high 25 points as the Lady Hornets downed Southern Boone's junior varsity - the sixth seed - in a 49-37 triumph in the consolation bracket.
"We were getting Kayanna good looks," Brunk said. "Southern Boone ran a little 2-3 zone (defense) and the girls did a good job of finding her."
Fulton owned a 22-15 advantage after one quarter, but the Lady Eagles outscored the Lady Hornets 11-3 in the second quarter to squeeze in front 26-25 at halftime.
Fulton answered by outscoring Southern Boone 9-4 in the third quarter to regain the lead at 34-30. The Lady Hornets then pulled away by outscoring the Lady Eagles 15-7 in the fourth quarter.
Hedgpath and junior guard Carly Fisher chipped in with seven points apiece for Fulton.
"The girls really came together in the second half and played more like a team," Brunk said. "We were moving the ball a lot better on offense and trusting each other.
"On defense, we were communicating."
Emily DeHaas paced Southern Boone with 18 points.
The Lady Hornets host Marshall in a North Central Missouri Conference matchup at 6 p.m. Monday at Roger D. Davis Gymnasium.