Eagles Hold Off Late Maryville Rally For Seven-Point Win

ST. LOUIS—University of Southern Indiana Women’s Basketball held off a late fourth-quarter rally to earn an 84-77 Great Lakes Valley Conference road win over host Maryville University Thursday evening.

Four Screaming Eagles scored in double-figures and nine different players contributed in the scoring column as USI ended a two-game skid.

Early run
The Eagles (9-3, 2-0 GLVC) used a 12-0 in the opening period to take a 10-point lead. Six different players contributed in the scoring column as USI grabbed the 12-2 lead five minutes into the contest.

First-half from downtown
USI hit five three-pointers for the game and all of them came in the opening half as USI led by as many as 17 points before going into the intermission with a 47-35 lead. Sophomore guard Emma DeHart (Indianapolis, Indiana) sunk three of the three-pointers as she scored 11 of her 13 points in the first 20 minutes.

Maryville builds momentum, but USI counters
The Saints (7-5, 1-2 GLVC) scored the final five points of the second quarter to turn a 17-point deficit into a more manageable 12-point hole at the break. USI, however, scored five straight points to begin the second half and extend its advantage to 52-35.

Guy steps up with a big “And 1”
As USI’s lead gradually dwindled, sophomore forward Imani Guy (Columbus, Indiana) stepped up on multiple occasions in the second half, but the first stopped a Maryville run that threatened USI’s double-digit lead. With the Eagles lead at 60-50 late in the third period, Guy snared an offensive rebound on a missed free throw, quickly scored a layup, drew the foul and sunk the free throw to steal momentum away from the Saints.

Fourth quarter woes
USI dominated the fourth quarter against the two teams that played for a national championship in 2018, but it was Maryville who stole the show in the final 10 minutes this evening. The Saints cut the Eagles’ 17-point cushion to 66-55 heading into the fourth and got to within 75-73 with less than 90 seconds to play.

Guy, Johnson come up with critical buckets
Guy had an old-fashioned three-point play with 6:45 to play in the game that turned a four-point lead into a 71-64 advantage; then scored a big layup with a minute left to put the Eagles up 77-73. Junior guard Ashley Johnson (Louisville, Kentucky) scored another basket with 26 seconds to play to put USI up, 79-73.

Davidson, Rowan seal win at the line
Senior guard Alex Davidson (Salem, Indiana) hit 4-of-4 free throw attempts in the final 20 seconds and senior forward/center Mikayla Rowan (Brazil, Indiana) made 1-of-2 attempts to seal the win for the Eagles.

Statistical leaders
Guy scored 13 of her team-best 15 points in the second half to lead the Eagles, while Johnson scored 12 of her 14 points in the final 20 minutes of the game. Davidson also finished with 14 points, while DeHart added a career-high nine rebounds and four assist to her 13 points. Senior center Kacy Eschweiler (St. Charles, Missouri) finished with eight points, while Rowan and sophomore guard Kennedy Williams (Marshall, Illinois) each had seven points.

Senior guard Stephanie Sherwood, a Newburgh, Indiana, native, paced the Saints with 20 points and eight rebounds.

Up Next
USI returns to action Saturday at 1 p.m. when it visits the University of Missouri-St. Louis. The Tritons (7-5, 1-2 GLVC) fell, 54-50, to Bellarmine University Thursday evening in St. Louis.

SOUTHERN INDIANA 84, MARYVILLE 77

SOUTHERN INDIANA (9-3, 2-0 GLVC)

Guy, Imani 6-9 3-6 15; Johnson, Ashley 5-7 4-4 14; Davidson, Alex 4-8 5-5 14; DeHart, Emma 5-8 0-0 13; Eschweiler, Kacy 4-10 0-0 8; Williams, Kennedy 3-9 0-2 7; Rowan, Mikayla 1-1 5-9 7; Sherwood, Morgan 2-2 0-0 4; Matias, Milana 1-1 0-0 2; Brown, Ashlynn 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 31-58 17-26 84.

MARYVILLE (7-5, 1-2 GLVC)

Sherwood,Stephanie 9-16 1-1 20; Barton,Mary 4-11 2-2 11; Monis,Abby 5-7 0-0 10; Lenahan,Erin 3-5 4-5 10; Stidham,Hunter 3-6 2-3 8; Longs,UU 2-6 2-4 6; Kirby,Taylor 1-2 2-3 4; Jansen,Jayda 2-5 0-0 4; Steward,Kayla 2-9 0-0 4; Hendrixson,Erika 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 31-67 13-18 77.

Southern Indiana…………..   25   22   19   18  -   84

Maryville…………………   15   20   20   22  -   77

3-point goals—Southern Indiana 5-14 (DeHart, Emma 3-4; Williams, Kennedy 1-3; Davidson, Alex 1-3; Eschweiler, Kacy 0-3; Johnson, Ashley 0-1), Maryville 2-14 (Sherwood,Stephanie 1-4; Barton,Mary 1-3; Lenahan,Erin 0-1; Longs,UU 0-3; Steward,Kayla 0-3). Fouled out—Southern Indiana-None, Maryville-None. Rebounds—Southern Indiana 35 (DeHart, Emma 9), Maryville 33 (Sherwood,Stephanie 8). Assists—Southern Indiana 20 (DeHart, Emma 4), Maryville 18 (Barton,Mary 5). Total fouls—Southern Indiana 19, Maryville 24. Technical fouls—Southern Indiana-None, Maryville-None. A-131