WINONA LAKE, Ind. – The Mid-America Christian University women's basketball team tipped off their 2018 NCCAA Division I National Championship as the top-seed in the eight team bracket. When the day started, the Lady Evangels were facing a team making their first trip to the National Championship, and by the time the afternoon was over, the MACU had a date with the team who ended their title chase in 2017.
MACU (22-11) steamrolled past Yellowstone Christian College (11-5) in the quarterfinal round of the Championship, and the Lady Evangels advanced to the national semifinal for the second straight season.
Paige Gregory of Yellowstone Christian opened the scoring 40 seconds into the game, but MACU scored the next seven points in a row, and the rout was on. Shelby Thrailkill buried consecutive 3-pointers with just less than four minutes to play in the first quarter to help MACU open a 17-5 lead, and those long range buckets came as a part of an 18-0 run and after the first quarter, MACU led 25-6. The Lady Evangels led by as many as 27 in the second stanza, and at the break, the Lady Evangels led comfortably, 40-20.
The Lady Evangels quickly pushed their lead to 31 in the second half, and a 7-0 run pushed the lead to 35 with 3:21 left in the quarter. At the end of the third, MACU led 68-34. The lead reached 40 twice in the final frame, and the Lady Evangels cruised in with the 85-45 win.
Alexis Shannon led all scorers with 24 points, and Jessica Fairley added 20 tallies and eight rebounds. Chelseah Savage had six points and seven assists in the win, and all 11 Lady Evangels who played in the game scored. MACU made 32-of-77 (41.6%) shots in the game, including 10-of-32 (31.3%) from long distance. MACU also made (57.9%) free throws. MACU forced 37 Yellowstone turnovers, and they notched a season high 22 steals.
MACU will return to action on Thursday at 4:15 p.m. central time in the national semifinal, where a familiar foe awaits. The Lady Evangels will battle the Emmanuel College Lions (17-11) in a rematch of the 2017 national semifinal. The Lions won the 2017 battle 75-74. The winner will advance to the National Championship game, with the loser moving on to the third-place game. Both of those games will take place on Saturday.
