The Basics

Score: #1 Evangel 80, #4 Saint Mary 55

Records: Evangel (26-2), Saint Mary (20-10)

Location: Springfield, Mo. (AGFinancial Arena)

Box Score 

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – After an exception defensive effort on Wednesday night resulted in a quarterfinal win over Kansas Wesleyan, the Evangel Women's Basketball team took on the four-seeded Saint Mary Spires in the KCAC Semifinals on Saturday, looking to earn a win and advance to the KCAC Championship on Monday. A strong second half of basket helped Evangel run away from the Spires, 80-55, as EU out-scored Saint Mary by 10 points in the fourth quarter.

The first quarter proved to be tightly contested, as Heaven Shockley did most of the work for Evangel, scoring 12 points in the period alone. After opening the game with a pair of baskets, Evangel grew cold from the floor, as Saint Mary used a 8-0 run to take a 8-4 lead. The Valor re-took the lead with 4:42 remaining in the quarter, as Cassidy Hambelton nailed a trifecta, making it a 13-12 game. Saint Mary tied the game back up at 18-18, but Brooklyn Kearbey scored a lay-up to close the period, giving EU a 20-18 lead.

Shockley again displayed her dominant play in the second quarter, scoring a team high seven points to lead Evangel with 19 points at the halftime break. Saint Mary could not find an answer for Shockley in the paint and that forced the Spires to lose track of the Valor guards who were cutting into the paint. A pair of Alyssa McCarty free throws closed out the half for EU, as the Valor led 37-27 

The third quarter proved to be Ali Kamies' time to shine. The senior scored eight points and pulled down seven rebounds in the period, using several late jumpers to help the Valor take a 16-point lead, 53-37, with 1:11 remaining. Saint Mary would hit a three pointer with just 10 seconds remaining in the period, but Hambelton would pull up from just past the half court line, nailing a buzzer beating three pointer to give EU a 56-41 lead, heading into the final quarter of play.

Evangel ran away with the fourth quarter, out-scoring Saint Mary by 10, with eight points coming from Lydia Babirye, who nailed a pair of step back three pointers to help solidify Evangel's win alongside Shockley, who continued her career night, also scoring eight in the final period. Evangel closed the game out on a 7-0 run, taking a 80-55 win over the Spires to advance to the KCAC Championship game on Monday.

QUOTABLE

"I''m incredibly proud of our defensive efforts in the second half today that ignited our offense," stated head coach Madi Wallace. "Back to work tomorrow to prepare for an incredibly tough Tabor matchup on Monday!"

NOTABLE 

• Heaven Shockley led the charge for EU, scoring a career high 31 points in Saturday's win.

• Cassidy Hambelton (13 pts.), Lydia Babirye (11 pts.), and Ali Kamies (10 pts.) rounded out double digit scoring on Saturday.

• Hambelton passed off a team high eight assists and pulled down 11 rebounds in the win.

UP NEXT

The Evangel Women's Basketball team will take on the 7th-seeded Tabor College Bluejays at home on Monday (Mar. 2) night for the KCAC Conference Tournament Championship, with tip-off set for 7:00 p.m. in Springfield. Tickets will go on sale tomorrow (Mar. 1) morning and all tickets must be pre-purchased online.

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.