Pikeville, Ky. – The hot streak continued for UPIKE women's basketball on Thursday evening as the Bears downed Bethel 74 to 68, extending the win streak to nine.

Morgan Stamper finished with 21 points and 17 rebounds for her 13^th double-double of the season. The NAIA's sixth leading offensive rebounder also finished with a season high 10 on the offensive glass.

Allie Stone led the Bears offense through a physical second half, finishing with 20 points on 6-12 shooting from the field.

As a team, UPIKE shot 42.9% from the floor, hit 16-18 from the free throw line, and outrebounded the Wildcats 39-36.

The first quarter opened with a 7-2 Bethel run, forcing the Bears to pick up the pace. Stamper powered through the paint for an offensive rebound and layup, scoring on two consecutive possessions to bring the Bears to within two. Stamper finished the opening quarter with seven points.

Bailey Frazier wasted no time in the second quarter, splashing a Hannah Roberts-assisted three to bring the Bears within one. An 8-4 run ensued, spanning three minutes, capped by a three by Stone which gave the Bears a 23-21 lead. Stamper's tenacity continued to display on the stat sheet as a rebound and free throw around the 4:00 mark already put her at 10 and 10 for the double-double. For the remainder of the period, the Bears outscored the Wildcats 18-11, with Stamper scoring seven and Stone dropping five. At the half, UPIKE held a 38-32 lead.

Bethel answered to open the second half, scoring back-to-back buckets to bring the contest within two points. Stamper followed up with a pair of makes at the line, bringing her total to 16 points and keeping the Wildcats at arm's length. Bethel broke out to a 5-3 run over the next 1:30, threatening to reclaim the lead trailing 42-41. A bucket from Stone followed by a put back layup for Stamper reestablished the Bears' momentum heading into the final five minutes of the quarter.

Bethel would threaten once more in the final two minutes of the period, splashing a pair of free throws to make the score 52-51 UPIKE. As the final seconds expired, Stamper battled for yet another offensive rebounding, dishing to Stone who scored to extend the lead to four heading into the fourth quarter.

Scoring was limited to open the fourth, with UPIKE scoring first via a contest mid-range jumper from Mary Englert. UPIKE's momentum grew, aiding along a 9-2 run that featured five points from Stone while the Bears hit 3-4 from the field and a pair of free throws. Coming out of the media timeout at 4:42, Englert hit another jumper to give the Bears a 66-55 lead, their largest of the contest.

Bethel clawed their way back to within four points with a 7-2 run before Stone answered with six straight points to put the Bears up by six with 0:41 to go. The Bears connected on four free throws in the final 0:40 to seal the conference win.

UPIKE women's basketball returns to action on Saturday, January 21^st as they take on Freed-Hardeman at 1:30 PM in the UPIKE Gym.