The Basics

Score: Evangel 101, Southwestern 61

Location: Springfield, Mo. (AGFinancial Arena) 

Records: Evangel (8-7, 6-3), Southwestern (1-10, 1-8) 

Box Score 

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Evangel Women's Basketball returned home on Wednesday (Jan. 8) evening to play host to the Southwestern College Moundbuilders, in search of their fifth consecutive conference win. Dominant play on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball helped guide the Valor to a 101-61 win.

Evangel shot 61.9 percent in the first quarter, jumping out to a 19-0 lead over the first six and a half minutes of play, with six points coming from both Ali Kamies and Lexi Berry in the run. The Moundbuilders were able to score seven points in the quarter, but Evangel matched those points in the final three minutes of play, taking a 27-7 lead into the second quarter. 

The second quarter of play continued similar to the first, as the Valor came out firing offensively, outscoring Southwestern 13-8 before the first media timeout. Kamies continued her strong first half by adding six points during the run and the Evangel defense continued to hold Southwestern to under 30 percent shooting in the first half. Ellison Mehrhoff and Berry closed out the quarter with baskets as EU led, 48-22, at the halftime break.

After taking their largest lead so far of the night (34 pts.), Southwestern made a 7-0 run in the third quarter, their largest of the evening, to narrow the Valor lead. The Valor quickly responded with a three pointer from Kamies to retake a 30 point lead, 59-29. Strong overall team play in the final minutes of the third quarter saw Evangel go on another run to take a 77-38 lead, heading into the final quarter of play.

Evangel used the final quarter of play to extend their lead, nearly hitting the 50 point mark, as a three pointer from Evin Montgomery gave the Valor a 92-43 lead over the Moundbuilders, their largest advantage of the evening. Southwestern was able to narrow the deficit in the final minutes of play, but the run came too little, too late, as EU hit the century mark, taking a 101-61 win on Wednesday.

QUOTABLE 

"Great start for us tonight. Our defense was on fire and in control. It's always great when you can play a bunch of players," stated Head Coach Jim Middleton. "To get 40 points combined from our freshman was a delight. It's great to be back home!"

NOTABLE 

• Ali Kamies led the Valor with 19 points in the win.

• Evin Montgomery (16 pts.), Lexi Berry (10 pts.), and Emily Recker (10 pts.) rounded out double digit scoring for EU.

• 13 different Valor athletes scored points in the win.

• Recker led Evangel with five assists.

• Jazzy Kirby and Lydia Babirye finished their night with a team high three steals.

• The 101 points scored were the most since January 19th of 2022, when the Valor women scored 112 in a win over Park on the road.

UP NEXT 

Evangel concludes their home stand on Saturday (Jan. 11) afternoon, hosting the Bethany College Swedes at noon in AGFinancial Arena.

For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, visit Facebook at Facebook.com/EvangelValor, Twitter (@EvangelValor), or EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on their favorite EU teams by downloading the Evangel Athletics Gameday App through the App Store or Google Play.  

—#OneValor—