Women's Basketball Battles in Loss to Mount Mercy

Marshall, Mo., (Jan. 24, 2024)- The Missouri Valley College men's and women's basketball teams welcomed in Mount Mercy (Iowa) for a Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader Wednesday evening inside the Burns Athletic Complex.  The women's team battled back, but fell to the Mustangs, 77-74.

The women's game opened with a high-scoring first quarter, helped by early layups from both Junior Noa Fernandez (Castraneda, Spain) and Junior Gia Moore (Independence, Mo.) to put Missouri Valley ahead, 4-2, with just over one minute played.  Mount Mercy responded with an 8-0 run over the next two minutes.  Fernandez ended the MVC drought with a basket moments later, but the Mustangs eventually held a 15-6 advantage just past the six-minute mark.  Fernandez cut into the deficit with a three-pointer, while Moore added a layup and Sophomore Sophie Sullivan (Lombard, Ill.) tacked on a pair of free throws to put the score at 19-13 midway through the quarter.  Junior Rajone Callahan (Wichita, Kan.) came down with an offensive rebound, and finished off a three-point play to cut the deficit down to 22-16 with just over three minutes to play in the quarter.  Callahan added a pair of free throws, while Moore followed with a four-point play to put the score at 26-22 in the final two minutes.  Mount Mercy ended scoring with a three-pointer, and the Vikings trailed, 29-22, going into the second quarter.

The second quarter started with a quick basket from Freshman Jocelynn Thompson (Austin, Texas) and a layup from Sullivan to shrink the gap down to 31-26 with one minute off the clock.  Mount Mercy slowly built up its advantage from there, which reached double-digits, at 37-27, near the six-minute mark.  Moore started a quick run for MVC with an offensive rebound and layup, followed by one free throw made by Sullivan and a layup from Fernandez.  The Vikings kept MMU scoreless over a more than five minute stretch in the quarter, forcing a pair of turnovers, to put the deficit at 37-32.  Junior Maddie Ferrara (Hendersonville, Tenn.) capped scoring in the half with a last-second basket, and Missouri Valley went into halftime trailing, 39-34.

Scoring after halftime started with a pair of field goals from Moore after play resumed to cut the deficit down to 39-38.  The Mustangs scored five-straight points to push their lead out to 44-38, and MVC went scoreless over a two minute stretch.  Moore ended the drought with a block and fast-break field goal, while Callahan added a basket near the six-minute mark to make it 46-42.  Mount Mercy again extended its lead, this time out to 49-42 midway through the quarter.  Moore followed with back-to-back three-pointers to pull the team into a 49-48 score with just over three minutes to play in the quarter.  Sullivan added a pair of free throws, and MVC completed its comeback on a Moore jumper near the one-minute mark to go on top, 52-51.  Sullivan added another basket before time expired, and the Vikings went into the fourth quarter in front, 54-53.

Sullivan extended the lead with a pair of free throws less than one minute into the final quarter of play, making it a 56-53 score.  Mount Mercy tied the teams just over one minute later, but a three-pointer from Callahan moved Missouri Valley ahead, 59-56 moments later.  The two teams traded points throughout the rest of the quarter, as MMU went on top, 62-61, with a Moore three-pointer giving Missouri Valley a 64-62 advantage near the six-minute mark.  Sophomore Tyler Conkright (Ellington, Mo.) added the next five points for MVC, allowing the team to stay in front, 69-67, midway through the quarter.  Mount Mercy tied the teams at 69-69, but Ferrara forced a blocked shot, which turned into a field goal for Moore to give the Vikings a 71-69 advantage with three minutes remaining.  The Mustangs countered with five-straight points to hold a 74-71 lead with just over one minute to play.  Ferrara tied the teams on a deep three-point shot, 74-74, but MMU answered with a three-pointer at the one-minute mark to pull ahead, 77-74.  Missouri Valley had two more possessions to try and tie the contest, but could not make a final shot, and fell by a score of 77-74.

Moore topped the 30-point mark for the fourth time this season, leading the team with 31 points, on 13 made field goals, to go with six rebounds.  Sullivan totaled 11 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, while Callahan had 10 points and seven rebounds.  Missouri Valley finished with a 38-35 advantage in rebounds and totaled 16 assists.

Missouri Valley drops to 9-11 overall and 7-9 in the Heart.  Mount Mercy improves to 12-7 on the season and 10-6 in the conference.

Up next, the Viking men's and women's basketball teams will travel to Atchison, Kan., for a Heart doubleheader with Benedictine (Kan.), Wednesday.  Women's game at 5:30 p.m., followed by the men's game at 7:30 p.m.  The men's team topped the Ravens in the previous matchup, at home back on Dec. 13, 69-91.

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About Missouri Valley College

Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 30 academic programs, study abroad program, extracurricular activities, and a wide variety of sports. The most popular majors include education and business, criminal justice and exercise science. Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.