Short-handed Lady Blazers unable to hold off Moberly Area in overtime thriller

VINCENNES, Ind. – The third meeting of the Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers and the Moberly Area Lady Greyhounds definitely lived up to the hype Saturday afternoon as it took overtime to decide a winner in the Physical Education Complex.

The two teams split the first two meetings this season, with VU winning at Moberly in the first game of the season and the Lady Greyhounds winning at Three Rivers College in Poplar Bluff a week later.

Vincennes led the entire game before Moberly rallied to even the score late in the fourth quarter and closed out the game in overtime 62-61 over the Lady Blazers.

The Lady Trailblazers already entered the game short-handed with only nine active players entering Saturday's game but were able to come out firing to begin the game, taking an early 10-2.

The Vincennes lead continued to grow throughout the first quarter, with VU holding a 19-6 advantage after the first 10 minutes of play.

Moberly Area looked to answer back in the second quarter and was able to cut the deficit down to four with a 10-0 scoring run to make it 27-23.

Vincennes answered back in front of the home crowd with a 7-0 scoring run and went into the locker room holding a 34-25 halftime lead over the Lady Greyhounds.

Moberly Area again looked to erase the VU lead in the third quarter, using another big 10-0 scoring run to cut the Lady Blazers advantage down to just a single point and head into the fourth quarter trailing Vincennes 43-41.

VU looked to get the momentum back to start the fourth quarter, scoring the first five points of the period to grow the lead back to seven.

Moberly would again battle back and even the score at 51-51 with just 90 seconds remaining. The first time the game had been tied since 2-2.

VU would take the lead back with a pair of free throws before Moberly Area scored at the other end to even the game back at 53-53.

After a timeout by VU Hall of Fame Head Coach Harry Meeks, the Lady Trailblazers looked to set up a buzzer beating shot with 12.9 seconds left but turned the ball over before getting a shot at the end of regulation.

Moberly Area continued to ride their momentum into the overtime period, scoring the first six points of the period and taking their first lead of the game in the process.

Vincennes would again answer back and get the Greyhound lead down to three and later just one point with under a minute to play.

After a Moberly Area miss, the Lady Blazers raced down the court looking to take the lead late or set up a play for a buzzer beater and managed to get two good looks at the basket on layups but were unable to convert either attempt and the Lady Greyhounds came away with the overtime victory 62-61 over the Lady Trailblazers.

VU was led offensively by a big double-double by sophomore Elikya Baseyila (Paris, France), who finished with 18 points, 20 rebounds, a new career-high and four blocks.

Freshman Karina Scott (Noblesville, Ind.) was the only other VU scorer in double-figures, coming away with 12 points on four made three-pointers to go along with eight rebounds and four assists.

Sophomore Johnai Wimbleduff (Indianapolis, Ind.) came off the bench to add nine points in the game, while also grabbing three rebounds and dishing out two assists.

Freshman Taylor Guess (Indianapolis, Ind.) ended with five points and nine rebounds, while fellow freshman Makyla Tucker (Indianapolis, Ind.) ended with six points and four rebounds.

The Lady Trailblazers will look to bounce back next week when VU continues their tour of Missouri to face Jefferson College in Hillsboro, Mo. Wednesday, Dec. 6 at 5 p.m. eastern.

VU will then return home to close out next week against NJCAA Division II No. 7-ranked Parkland College Saturday, Dec. 9 at 7 p.m. eastern.

VINCENNES BOX SCORE

VINCENNES (61): Taylor Guess 2-11 1-2 5, Maycee Lange 0-5 0-0 0, Elikya Baseyila 7-12 4-7 18, Karina Scott 4-15 0-0 12, Katrina Litte 0-5 3-4 3, Makyla Tucker 2-12 0-0 6, Najra Voloder 2-5 2-2 6, Brie Miller 1-8 0-0 2, Johnai Wimbleduff 3-8 2-2 9, Team 21-81 12-17 61.

Moberly Area – 6   19   16   12   9 – 62

VU (3-6) – 19   15   9   10   8 – 61

Three-point goals: VU 7 (Scott 4, Tucker 2, Wimbleduff). Rebounds: VU 65 (Baseyila 20). Assists: VU 17 (Litte 5). Steals: VU 8 (Lange 2, Scott 2). Blocked Shots: VU 8 (Baseyila 4). Turnovers: VU 33. Personal Fouls: VU 17. Fouled out: None.