KENT, Ohio – Sophia Wiard turned in one of the best offensive performances ever by a Rocket on Wednesday, scoring 40 points to help lead the Toledo women's basketball team to an 87-76 win at Kent State.

Wiard was remarkable, knocking down 12-of-17 shots from the floor and 13-of-14 free throws to reach the 40-point plateau for the second time in her career. Her career high is a school-record 42 points, which she scored at Northern Illinois on Dec. 10, 2020. Wednesday's game was the fourth 40-point game ever by a Rocket, and Wiard is now the only player in school history with multiple 40-point performances.

Wiard is the eighth Division I player with a 40-point game this season and the first MAC player to reach that benchmark.

"I was just feeling it tonight," Wiard said. "I was just playing basketball and my teammates did a really good job of drawing in defenders and kicking it out to give me some good looks."

The win was Toledo's sixth in a row and brings its record to 12-3 overall and 5-0 in MAC play. UT is tied with Ball State (15-2, 5-0 MAC) for first place in the MAC standings after the Cardinals' road win at Central Michigan earlier in the day. The Rockets will head to Muncie on Sunday for a nationally televised matchup vs. Ball State in a battle between the final two unbeaten teams in the MAC.

Toledo led Kent State for much of the game and held a six-point lead at halftime. UT shot 70.6% from the floor in the third quarter, connecting on 12-of-17 shots, to grow its lead to 62-46 heading into the final period. The Golden Flashes scored 30 points in a high-scoring fourth quarter, but the Rockets made several successful trips to the free throw line and benefited from Wiard's 16 fourth-quarter points to hang on and win.

"What an incredible performance," head coach Tricia Cullop said of Wiard's night. "She was sensational today. She took what they gave her and performed really, really well. For as much as she handled the ball tonight, she scored 40 points and only had one turnover. Her teammates did a good job of helping her get open as well.

"Every game I've told them that you don't know who is going to need to step up for us to win," Cullop continued. "Soph did tonight, it might be somebody new the next game. I'm proud of the turnover situation tonight. We have been our own worst enemy the last few games with turnovers so it was nice to see us take better care of the basketball tonight."

Toledo committed just five turnovers against Kent State, its fewest since Feb. 8, 2023 vs. Buffalo. The Rockets only committed one turnover in the second half.

Sammi Mikonowicz was Toledo's next-highest scorer with 12 points, and Jessica Cook added eight points off the bench. After missing the previous six games due to injury, Quinesha Lockett returned to the starting lineup on Wednesday and scored eight points and grabbed four rebounds in 20 minutes of action.

Wiard made another bit of history in the first quarter on Wednesday when she officially surpassed former Rocket Naama Shafir for the most minutes played in program history. Wiard also played in her 138^th career game and will tie Shafir for most games played in school history this Sunday at Ball State.

Kent State's Katie Shumate led her team with 26 points and seven rebounds, and Jenna Batsch scored 17 points, 15 of which came in the second half.

Toledo's game this Sunday at Ball State will tip off at 6:00 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.

Toledo's next home game is Wednesday, Jan. 24 vs. Northern Illinois. To purchase Toledo Women's Basketball tickets, visit the Rocket Athletic Ticket Office at the Sullivan Athletic Complex in Savage Arena, contact the Rocket Athletic Ticket Office at 419-530-GOLD (4653), or go online to UTRockets.com/tix.

1^st Quarter

• Kent State scored the first five points of the game and led 10-5 at the 6:49 mark.
• Toledo held Kent to just two points for the rest of the first quarter.
• Sophia Wiard tied it up at 10-10 with a three-pointer near the midway point of the period, and Quinesha Lockett's three with 4:01 to go gave UT its first lead of the game.
• Wiard scored seven points in the first quarter and helped Toledo take a 16-12 lead into the break.

2^nd Quarter

• Nan Garcia's three-pointer at the 7:31 mark of the second quarter extended the lead to 23-17.
• Kent State's Katie Shumate accounted for all of her team's scoring in the first three-and-a-half minutes of the quarter, scoring seven points and keeping the Golden Flashes within striking distance.
• Jessica Cook knocked down jumpers on three straight possessions to help extend the lead to 31-23 with 4:48 to go in the half.
• The Rockets would carry a 35-29 advantage into the locker room at halftime and held the Golden Flashes to 8-of-28 shooting (28.6%) in the first half.

 
3^rd Quarter

• Toledo (eight points) doubled Kent State's (four points) scoring output to open the quarter to increase its lead to 45-33, a stretch that was capped by a basket by Sammi Mikonowicz.
• A 9-0 run increased the Rockets' lead to 60-42 with 2:25 to go in the quarter.
• UT shot 70.6% from the floor in the third quarter and outscored Kent 27-17 to bring its lead to 62-46.

 
4^th Quarter

• Lockett opened the scoring in the fourth quarter with a three-pointer, but Kent State embarked on an 11-3 run to pull within 11, 68-57.
• Jenna Batsch scored four straight points for the Golden Flashes to put them within nine, 70-61, with 4:42 to go in the game.
• Wiard controlled the next two minutes of action, scoring six straight points to push Toledo's lead back to 15, 76-61.
• Shumate's three-pointer with 50 seconds left put the Golden Flashes back within 10, but Wiard responded on the next possession with a bucket.
• That layup sparked a run of six points in the final minute for Wiard, who knocked down a pair of free throws with 19 seconds left to push her total to 40 and ice the Rockets' sixth consecutive win. Wiard scored 16 points in the fourth quarter and was 9-of-10 from the free throw line in the final period.