OKLAHOMA CITY -- The Mid-America Christian University Lady Evangels' late rally fell short as the Langston University Lions held on for an 82-75 win tonight (Nov. 19) inside the Gaulke Activity Center. 

The Lady Evangels trailed by 20 on two occasions in the second half before surging within two possessions when a Lindsey Mann made it 79-73 with 11 seconds left. 

MACU came as close as 80-75 on a jumper by Sarai Rodriguez, but two free throws by T'Keya Mason iced the win for the Lions in the final seconds. 

The Lions charged out of the gate by outscoring the Lady Evangels 15-2 during the first six minutes of the first quarter. 

Kelli Tolar then caught fire and scored eight straight points and a free throw by Tierra Brown cut the deficit to 15-11. 

It was a 17-13 score when the Lions ended the quarter with four straight points to lead 21-13. 

Much like the opening quarter, the Lions started the second quarter strong and stretched their edge to 15 in the first three minutes and carried a 50-34 lead into the break. 

The Lady Evangels (2-2) got double-doubles from both Tolar and Brown, as Tolar produced 24 points and 11 rebounds, while Brown had 18 points and 11 boards. Rodriguez scored 11 and dished out a game-high nine assists. 

Mason led all scorers with 33 points for the Lions (3-1) and Che'Ron Lewis had 22 points.  Alexus Johnson also scored in double-figures with 10 points along with a team-high nine rebounds. 

It was a tale of two halves shooting the ball, as the Lions shot a blistering 52.6 percent (20-of-38) in the first half but cooled off to 31 percent (9-of-29) in the second half.  Meanwhile, the Lady Evangels mustered only a 40 percent (12-of-30) clip in the opening half but warmed up to 45.9 percent (17-of-37) in the second stanza. 

The Lady Evangels will next play another NAIA top-25 ranked squad when they face No. 12-ranked Cumberland University Saturday afternoon (Nov. 21) at 4 p.m. in Lebanon, Tenn.