MT. PLEASANT, Mich. – Graduate student Sammi Mikonowicz scored 20 points including seven points in a key stretch in the fourth quarter as  the Toledo women's basketball team battled for a Mid-American Conference road victory, pushing past Central Michigan 71-66 at McGuirk Arena on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Rockets (11-3, 3-1 MAC) picked up their third-straight win. Down 64-62 in the fourth quarter, Toledo rattled off nine-straight points over a span of 2:46 to take the lead and put the game away against the Chippewas (5-10, 1-3 MAC).
 
"I'm proud of our fight and once again, our success started on the defensive end today," said Head Coach Ginny Boggess. "I give a big shoutout to our assistant coaches for adjusting to play zone down the stretch. That got us the stops we needed and broke Central Michigan's momentum. We finished the game really well and everyone brought a lot of energy and toughness, especially with a short bench. Central Michigan is a very good opponent and the MAC is a very good league, and I'm learning a lot about what it takes to be successful in this conference."
 
Mikonowicz shot 6-of-9 from the field and 7-of-9 from the free throw line, scoring the final seven points in Toledo's winning 9-0 run in the final period. Sophomore Kendall Carruthers added 14 points and made all three of her free throw attempts while graduate student Khera Goss scored 11. Carruthers also led the Rockets with three assists.
 
Carruthers and graduate student Nan Garcia each finished with six rebounds to lead the Rockets while four others grabbed four on the afternoon. Defensively, the Rockets came up with seven steals, with Goss leading the way with two while five others swiped one.
 
First Quarter – Central Michigan 16, Toledo 13

• A back-and-forth start saw Central Michigan with a 10-8 lead at the media timeout.
• After a scoring drought of over three minutes for both teams, Sammi Mikonowicz's and-1 tied the game at 11-11.
• Central Michigan's Jayda Mosley knocked down a three for the lead in the final minute.

Second Quarter – Toledo 40, Central Michigan 33

• Toledo won the quarter 27-17, shooting 9-for-14 (64.3%) in the period.
• The Rockets went on a 10-0 run over 1:59 to take a 25-18 lead at the 6:40 mark, with six points by Khera Goss and four by Kendall Carruthers in the spurt.
• The Chippewas got back into the game with an 8-2 run over 1:52, cutting the Rocket lead to 33-31 at the 1:58 mark.
• Toledo then broke the CMU with seven of the last nine points of the period to regain a seven-point advantage.

Third Quarter – Toledo 57, Central Michigan 49

• After Central Michigan scored the first four points of the half, the Rockets went on an 8-2 run over 3:45 to grab a 48-39 lead at the 8:48 mark.
• Sammi Mikonowicz made a pair of free throws to give the Rockets their biggest lead of the quarter, 55-44 with 2:59 left in the period.
• Destiny Robinson's layup in the final minute broke five-straight CMU points, pushing the Toledo lead to eight to close the quarter.
• Robinson and Faith Fedd-Robinson led the charge with five points apiece in the quarter.

Fourth Quarter – Toledo 71, Central Michigan 66

• Central Michigan started the quarter on an 8-2 run to cut Toledo's lead to 59-57 with 6:17 left to play.
• The Chippewas twice grabbed the lead, at 60-59 and again at 62-61 with 3:50 left.
• Toledo used four-straight trips to the free-throw line on four-straight possessions to take a 66-64 lead with 2:18 to go.
• Mikonowicz took over down the stretch, scoring on back-to-back possessions to extend the Rockets' advantage to 70-64 with 45 seconds left in the game.
• Toledo held central Michigan scoreless from the 3:35 mark until the final seconds during its 9-0 run
• Mikonowicz finished with eight points in the quarter, going 2-for-2 from the field and making four free throws.

Game Notes

• The Rockets won the turnover battle, committing just 10 turnovers to 17 for Central Michigan. Toledo held the edge in points off turnovers, 17-12.
• MIkonowicz reached 20 points for the third time this season, all on the road. She scored 27 against Navy on Nov. 30 and 20 at Akron on Jan. 4.
• The 27 points in the second quarter is the most in a conference game this season.
• Toledo won its sixth straight game against Central Michigan.

UP NEXT
The Rockets remain in the Mitten State, taking on Western Michigan on Wednesday, Jan. 15. Tipoff from Kalamazoo is set for 7:00 p.m. on ESPN+, with radio broadcasts on WCWA 1230 AM and The Varsity Network app.