Shawnee, Okla. -- The No. 20-ranked John Brown University Golden Eagles knocked down 11 three-point shots on the way to a 72-60 win over the Mid-America Christian University Lady Evangels in the Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament quarterfinals Thursday morning (Mar. 6) at the Noble Complex on the campus of Oklahoma Baptist University in Shawnee, Okla.
JBU will advance to battle the winner of Oklahoma City University and Southwestern Christian University tomorrow afternoon (Mar. 7) at 3 p.m.
The Golden Eagles got off to a quick start thanks to a hot shooting first half that saw them knock 7-of-14 from the perimeter, compared to 0-of-10 for the Lady Evangels.
JBU built an early 19-8 lead before the Lady Evangels fought back with a quick 6-2 spurt to come within 24-16.
The Golden Eagles then pushed back with an 11-4 run to stretch the lead back to 15 on the way to a 41-25 lead at the break.
The Lady Evangels started the second half with an 8-4 run as a running jumper by Alliyah Spatafora trimmed the deficit to 45-33.
Lauren Rogers then started the three-point onslaught again with consecutive treys to bring the lead back to 18.
The Lady Evangels refused to go quietly as Ashlee Ferguson nailed their first three of the game and a three-point play by Maclayn Massey capped a 10-2 spurt that made it a 10-point game with 10:13 left.
After Ferguson again connected from three to bring the deficit down to single digits, Rogers answered for JBU with a three of her own to stretch the lead back to 62-50.
The Lady Evangels continued to hang around and inched ever closer when Ferguson hit two free throws that made it 64-56.
But Rogers again thwarted the rally with a three that put the finishing touches of seven straight points by the Golden Eagles that put it away.
Ferguson led the Lady Evangels with 18 points, while April Williams had a team-high nine rebounds.
Rodgers led all scorers with 22 points for the Golden Eagles and hit 6-of-8 beyond the arc. Sierra Shipley added 15 points and Morgan Ankrom had a double-double of 10 points and 11 boards.
The Golden Eagles held a slim 48-46 edge in rebounding, but the Lady Evangels enjoyed a 22-8 advantage on the offensive glass.
JBU out-rebounded the Lady Evangels 40-24 on the defensive glass thanks to holding MACU to only 29.1 percent shooting from the field.
The Lady Evangels will now gear up for the National Christian Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) Central Regional Tournament next week on the campus of Oklahoma Christian University in Edmond, Okla.
