Lady Blazers drop hard fought rematch with Moberly Area C.C.

VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers closed out the 2024 VU Lady Blazer Classic Saturday evening with a rematch against the Lady Greyhounds of Moberly Area Community College from Moberly, Mo.

Moberly Area came away with a 73-61 victory earlier this season in Moberly and were able to complete the season sweep as the Lady Blazers came out on the wrong side of a 76-71 final score.

The two teams came out firing in the opening quarter, trading basket after basket with the Lady Greyhounds holding a 28-21 lead after a high scoring opening 10 minutes.

Vincennes was able to bounce back and get the lead back in the second quarter after an 8-0 scoring run put the Lady Blazers on top 33-32.

Moberly Area regained the momentum and looked to be going into the locker room on a hot streak before the Lady Blazers scored the final six points of the first half to head into the halftime break tied at 44-44.

The second half was much more of a defensive battle with VU holding a 53-52 lead before Moberly Area closed out the third quarter on an 8-2 scoring run to take a 60-55 lead into the final quarter of action.

VU grabbed the early momentum in the fourth quarter, opening the final period by outscoring the Lady Greyhounds 8-2 to take a 63-62 lead.

Moberly Area was able to convert from three-point range down the stretch, as the Lady Trailblazers continued to battle but were unable to regain their lead as Moberly Area closed out the 76-71 victory.

“I do believe that we put in a good fight,” Lady Blazers Interim Head Coach Ingrida Hartsfield said. “I think we fell a little short especially right at the end of the game. I think in the final two minutes we didn’t get the rebounds that we needed and it just seemed like we just stopped playing for a second and that cost us.”

The Lady Trailblazers were led offensively by freshman Delora Pricop (Brasov, Romania) who finished her night with a career-high 23 points, to go along with five rebounds and five big blocks.

Freshman Netala Dixon (Dyersburg, Tenn.) continued to attack the basket all game, finishing her night with 17 points, six assists and four rebounds.

Sophomore Marta Chico (Chabas, Spain) got the Lady Blazers offense going early and connected on four of four from three-point range to set a new season-high with 16 points and six rebounds.

Freshman Ahmya Thomas (Phoenix, Ariz.) entered the starting lineup for the first time this season and did not disappoint with another all-around game with 11 points, eight assists, six steals and five rebounds.

“Individually I think we did well on offense,” Hartsfield added. “Of course we still need to work on some of the finishes and it’s never going to be perfect but it starts with defense. You can’t win the games if you don’t play defense or box out and rebound.”

The Lady Trailblazers will look to bounce back when they return to the Physical Education Complex floor Tuesday, Nov. 19 to take on Kaskaskia College at 5 p.m. eastern.

“We will watch the film from this weekend and hopefully learn from our mistakes,” Hartsfield said. “I told them in the locker room that this one’s done and you can’t go back so we’ve just got to keep moving forward.”

Other scores from the final day of the 2024 VU Lady Blazer Classic include No. 4 Wabash Valley College winning over NJCAA D-III No. 6 ranked Owens Community College 111-51.

VINCENNES BOX SCORE

VINCENNES (71): Delora Pricop 8-16 7-9 23, Ahmya Thomas 3-11 5-6 11, Marta Chico 6-6 0-2 16, Yanni Huggins 0-0 0-0 0, Netala Dixon 8-16 0-2 17, Iris Valera 2-6 0-0 4, Emani Washington 0-2 0-0 0, Team 27-57 12-19 71.

Moberly Area – 28   16   16   16 – 76

VU (2-4) – 21   23   11   16 – 71

Three-point goals: VU 5 (Chico 4, Dixon). Rebounds: VU 30 (Chico 6). Assists: VU 22 (Thomas 8). Steals: VU 8 (Thomas 6). Blocked Shots: VU 5 (Pricop 5). Turnovers: VU 16. Personal Fouls: VU 15. Fouled out: None.

USI falls at Purdue Fort Wayne
Screaming Eagles come home next week

FORT WAYNE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball concluded a three-game road swing with a 93-74 loss at Purdue University Fort Wayne Saturday evening in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The Screaming Eagles are 1-4 to start the year, while the Mastodons go to 3-1 in 2024-25.

USI spotted Purdue Fort Wayne a 14-point first-half advantage, 28-14, before junior guard Jared Washington caught fire and sparked a 15-1 run to pull to within two, 31-29, with 5:21 left in the opening half. Washington scored 12 of the 15 points, while USI, as a team, was a perfect six-of-six from outside, including three-of-three from downtown.

The Mastodons would win the final five minutes, 10-6, and led at halftime, 41-35.

In the second half, Purdue Fort Wayne expanded its halftime lead to 11 points, 55-44, before USI narrowed the deficit to four points, 56-52, with 13:44 to play when junior guard Jayland Randall converted a pair of free throws. The Mastodons rebounded and expanded their advantage to as many as 23 points, 88-65, with 3:25 to play before settling for the 93-74 final.

Individually for USI, Washington would lead the Eagles with 19 points, a season-high. The junior guard was six-of-11 from the field, three-of-seven from beyond the arc, and four-of-four from the stripe.

Randall and junior guard Damoni Harrison followed with 14 points each. Harrison was five-of-nine from the field, two-of-four from long range, and two-for-two from the line. Randall was four-of-10 from the field and six-of-six from the charity stripe.

Next Up For USI:
USI returns to Liberty Arena’s friendly home surroundings on November 22 when it hosts the University of South Dakota to start a three-game homestand. During the homestand, USI is also slated to host Indiana State University on November 25 and East-West University on December 2.

Cooper’s second half propels No. 21 Trailblazers past Malcolm X College

VINCENNES, Ind. – The No. 21-ranked Vincennes University Trailblazers returned to action Saturday afternoon for a weekend matinee against Malcolm X College from Chicago, Ill.

The Trailblazers overcame a slow start and were guided by 21 second half points by sophomore Michael Cooper (Minneapolis, Minn.) as the Blazers closed out an 87-66 victory over the visiting Hawks.

Vincennes got off to a slow start Saturday afternoon, with Malcolm X coming out and scoring the first eight points of the game.

The Trailblazers were able to rebound though and answered back by outscoring Malcolm X 21-8 to take a 21-16 lead.

VU closed out the opening half strong, riding an 8-0 scoring run to head into the halftime break leading the Hawks 38-32.

Coming out of the locker room the Trailblazers took their game up another level, opening the second half by outscoring Malcolm X 19-6 to take a 57-38 lead.

Malcolm X would answer back and cut the VU lead back down to 14 before the Blazers used another 8-0 scoring run to open up a 71-48 advantage.

Vincennes was able to keep the defensive pressure up all night as VU was able to close out the game at the free throw line and pick up an 87-66 victory over Malcolm X College.

The Trailblazers were led offensively by sophomore Michael Cooper who finished his night with 21 points, all coming in the second half, while also adding a team-high six steals and three rebounds to his totals.

Freshman Dayton Williams (Louisville, Ky.) finished his night with 15 points and eight rebounds to go along with three assists.

Sophomore and 2024 NJCAA All-American Lebron Thomas (Bishopville, S.C.) was the third VU scorer in double figures, finishing his day with 11 points, three assists and three rebounds.

Freshman Jalen Calloway (Chicago, Ill.) just missed out on a double-double, ending with nine points and nine rebounds.

Freshman Kenaz Ochogwu (E. Providence, R.I.) got his first collegiate start Saturday and finished the game with eight points, while sophomore Bryan Akanmu (Paris, France) added seven points and team-highs 10 rebounds and four assists.

The Trailblazers will return to the P.E. Complex floor Tuesday, Nov. 19 when VU hosts another Region 4 opponent, welcoming Kankakee Community College from Kankakee, Ill.

Tip-off time for your Trailblazers Tuesday night will be 7 p.m. eastern.

VINCENNES BOX SCORE

VINCENNES (87): Michael Cooper 5-8 11-13 21, Kenaz Ochogwu 4-5 0-0 8, Jalen Calloway 4-5 1-2 9, Lebron Thomas 2-6 7-10 11, Dayton Williams 7-15 0-1 15, Christian Andrews 1-3 1-1 4, Meyoh Swansey 0-1 0-0 0, Bryan Akanmu 2-4 3-4 7, Taveon Smith 0-0 0-2 0, Travelle Bryson 3-6 1-2 8, Hussein Elmaraghy 1-1 2-3 4, Team 29-54 26-38 87.

Malcolm X – 32   34 – 66

VU (5-1) – 38   49 – 87

Three-point goals: VU 3 (Williams, Andrews, Bryson). Rebounds: VU 47 (Akanmu 10). Assists: VU 17 (Akanmu 4). Steals: VU 13 (Cooper 6). Blocked Shots: VU 5 (Cooper, Calloway, Williams, Bryson, Smith). Turnovers: VU 27. Personal Fouls: VU 17. Fouled out: None.

Aces fall in road finale

UE home on Wednesday to face Indiana State

VALPARAISO, Ind. – Angelica Gonzalez recorded a match-high 11 kills in Saturday’s road match that saw the University of Evansville volleyball team fall by a 3-0 final at Valparaiso.

Ainoah Cruz had another strong defensive performance, totaling 25 digs.  Kora Ruff added 21 assists and 10 digs.  Elise Swistek finished the night with 10 kill to lead the way for the Beacons.

Set 1 – Valpo 25, UE 21

Gonzalez got the night started with a kill and the Purple Aces jumped out to a 7-5 lead.  The Beacons knotted the score at 8-8 before Gonzalez’ third kill of the match opened a 4-0 stretch that put UE on top at 12-8.  Kora Ruff recorded a service ace during the run.  Carlotta Pascual tallied a kill that solidified a 14-11 Evansville lead and that is when Valpo rallied with four in a row to go in front at 15-14.

Despite the rally, UE got back on track as a Chloe Cline kill opened a 4-0 run that gave the Aces an 18-16 lead.  Once again, VU had the answer.  Trailing 20-18, they finished the set on a 7-1 run to take the set.

Set 2 – Valpo 25, UE 19

Evansville enjoyed another solid start to game two.  Josdarilee Caraballo picked up a kill that gave her squad a 7-4 lead.  Three in a row by the Beacons tied it up before the Aces went back in front at 11-9 when Maddie Hawkins registered an ace.  The teams swapped the lead on multiple occasions in the middle portion of the set, leading to a 19-18 Valpo lead.  Another late rally saw the Beacons scored six of the last seven points to take a 2-0 match lead.

Set 3 – Valpo 25, UE 12

With the score tied at 2-2, the Beacons reeled off eight in a row to take a commanding 10-2 lead.  From there, they would go on to clinch the match with a 25-12 decision.

On Wednesday, the Aces welcome Indiana State for a 6 p.m. match to complete the regular season.

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