Eagles record win on Friday, finish non-conference season at .500

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women’s Basketball finished the non-conference season with an 86-37 victory against Brescia University (KY) on Friday afternoon at Screaming Eagles Arena.

With the win, USI finished the non-conference slate with a .500 record of 5-5, preceding the start of Ohio Valley Conference play.

The Screaming Eagles came out of the gate with an 18-0 lead in the first quarter. Senior forward Meredith Raley (Haubstadt, Indiana) led the early charge, which included a triple and a three-point play. Raley scored double figures in the opening period. Southern Indiana’s defense was also stifling, forcing the Bearcats into multiple turnovers in the backcourt. USI’s first-quarter play featured a balanced attack, shooting over 64 percent overall with six made threes, which led to a 35-7 advantage through 10 minutes of action.
 
Southern Indiana continued to spread the ball around in the first half, as nine Screaming Eagles found the scoring column before halftime. Late in the second quarter, graduate guard Tori Handley (Jeffersonville, Indiana) and junior guard Vanessa Shafford (Linton, Indiana) combined for a stretch of scoring that put both with 10 points in the first half. USI led 56-18 at the break.
 
Early in the third quarter, Raley converted her second basket-and-foul opportunity of the game, crossing over the 20-point plateau for the contest and giving USI a 63-20 lead. The balance of post-play and outside shooting continued for Southern Indiana in the second half. During the middle portion of the game, redshirt senior guard Addy Blackwell (Bloomington, Indiana) surpassed 100 made three-pointers in her career. The Screaming Eagles carried a 74-27 lead into the fourth period.
 
As offenses cooled off a bit in the fourth quarter, USI freshman forward Chloe Gannon (Manchester, Tennessee) also joined the double-digit club in the fourth, connecting on a pair of baskets. With a three-point play in the period, Gannon matched a career-best 13 points, which she set in the last game against the University of Cincinnati.
 
Southern Indiana shot over 57 percent for the game with 30 makes on 52 attempts, 11-of-22 from beyond the arc, and over 88 percent (15-17) from the foul line. USI outrebounded Brescia 38-23. Raley led all scorers with 22 points on 7-of-8 shooting and 6-of-6 at the free-throw line. Gannon finished with 13 points, Shafford had 12 points, and Handley tallied 10 points.
 
Brescia was 12-of-49 for 24.5 percent from the floor with four triples and nine made free throws. Freshman guard Genesis Ghide-Bryan led the Bearcats with 13 points.
 
Following a short holiday break, the Screaming Eagles will prepare to open the Ohio Valley Conference season next week on the road at Southeast Missouri State University and Lindenwood University.