Springfield, Mo. – Evangel had a five point lead after three quarters but were held to six points in the fourth period and lost at home to Missouri Valley 61-56 on Wednesday night. 

The Crusaders led most of the game and were up 50-43 late in the third quarter before the Vikings went on an 11-3 run to take a 54-53 lead with 2:46 left. 

"We couldn't get the ball where it needed to go and had a tough time getting good shots in the fourth quarter," said Evangel head coach Leon Neal. "Then we had a hard time stopping (Diedra) McCoy in the second half. She's a good player, a smart player and one of the best players in the conference. She made a big difference from them in the second half." 

McCoy scored 17 of her 20 points in the second half, connected on 14 of 17 free throw attempts and had a double-double grabbing 10 rebounds. Andressa Augusto added 18 points. 

Taylor Longley led Evangel with 15 points on 4 of 11 shooting. Allison Swanson chipped in 14 points and 5 rebounds. 

With the loss, Evangel's record drops to 8-16 and 6-12 in the Heart of America Conference. Missouri Valley improves to 11-12and 9-10 in the conference.

Evangel will be on the road on Saturday when they travel to Canton, Missouri to take on Culver-Stockton in a Heart of America conference showdown. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:00pm.