OKLAHOMA CITY – The second-seeded and nationally 22^nd-ranked Mid-America Christian women's basketball team struggled offensively, being held to a season-low 18 points in the first half as the Evangels fell 74-55 to No. 3 seed Texas Wesleyan in the Sooner Athletic Conference Semifinal inside the Gaulke Activity Center on Monday night.
 
TOP PERFORMERS

• Lexi Hernandez – 20 Points, 6-14 FG, 3-7 3FG, 5-8 FT, 4 Reb
• Ossyana Ozoani – 10 Points, 4-10 FG, 2-4 FT, 10 Reb
• McKenzi Lamer – 10 Points, 4-11 FG, 2-6 3FG

GAME SUMMARY

• First Quarter
  • Mid-America Christian jumped out to an early 5-2 lead off a Lexi Hernandez three and an Ossyana Ozoani layup with just over eight minutes left.
  • Texas Wesleyan went on a stellar run over the final eight minutes of the period, outscoring the Evangels 17-1, which included scoring the last 13 points to hold a 23-6 lead over MACU.
  • The Lady Rams held MACU to without a score over the final 5:03 and to without a field goal for 8:04.
• Second Quarter
  • A Kertisa Amos layup off an offensive stretched the TWU advantage to 25-6 just 23 seconds in.
  • McKenzi Lamer made a great move into the paint and finished strong to snap the Evangels offensive skid at the 9:03 mark.
  • MACU held the Lady Rams scoreless over a 5:39 stretch and put together a 7-0 run capped off on an Anna Kash three-pointer with 5:12 remaining to close the deficit to 25-13.
  • The Lady Rams swung back by scoring six of the next seven before Lamer knocked down a three-ball with just over three minutes to go to close it back to a 31-17 deficit.
  • TWU finished the half strong, closing out with a 9-1 surge, including scoring the final seven points to take a 40-18 edge heading into the break.
• Third Quarter
  • Mid-America Christian was able to find an offensive rhythm through the first six minutes of the first half as the Evangels stormed back by outscoring TWU 16-6 as Hernandez drained a three with 4:12 to go to bring it to a 46-34 game.
  • The Evangels struggled to cut any farther into the Lady Rams' advantage as the Lady Rams scored eight of the final 14 points to maintain a 54-40 advantage after three.
• Fourth Quarter
  • On MACU's first possession of the period, Lamer hit a three to close it to an 11-point deficit at 54-43, its closest deficit since the 2:31 mark in the first quarter.
  • Both teams struggled to find an offensive rhythm over the next few minutes as TWU rattled off five of the next seven before Sydney Wycoff made a strong cut into the lane and finished to bring it back to 59-47 with 6:23 left.
  • Texas Wesleyan all but put the game away following a Makyala Coy three-ball from the top of the key as the Lady Rams tallied seven-straight to extend the edge to 66-47 with 3:56 left on a Zarria Carter jumper.
  • The Evangels were unable to put a dent into the TWU lead the rest of the way as the Lady Rams secured the 74-55 victory.

GAME NOTES

• Mid-America Christian put together its worst shooting performance of the season, finishing with a season-low 55 points on 19-of-68 (27.9 percent) shooting and converting on only 6-for-22 (27.3 percent) from the three-point arc.
• Offensively, Texas Wesleyan finished the contest by going 30-for-65 (46.2 percent) from the field, including 8-of-13 (61.5 percent) in the fourth quarter while shooting a blistering 5-for-7 (71.4 percent) from the three-point arc.
• Texas Wesleyan dominated on the glass, outrebounding the Evangels 54-32. However, MACU was able to gain some ground by forcing 21 Lady Rams turnovers while committing just 14 of its own.
• The Evangels struggled to find an answer for SAC Freshman of the Year Zarria Carter, who finished with a triple-double with 26 points on 12-for-16 shooting, pulled down 19 rebounds and blocked an astounding 10 shots.
• Lexi Hernandez led MACU with 20 points on 6-for-14 from the field, 3-of-7 from three and went 5-for-8 from the foul line to go with four rebounds.
• Ossyana Ozoani notched her 16^th double-double of the season with 10 points on 4-of-10 shooting and pulled down 10 boards.
• McKenzi Lamer provided a spark off the MACU bench with 10 points on 4-of-11 from the floor and 2-for-6 from three.
• With the loss, Mid-America Christian suffered its first defeat in the Gaulke Activity Center during the 2021-22 season. The Evangels had won 17 straight in the building during the regular season and SAC Quarterfinal.
• The defeat drops the Evangels to 27-4 on the season while Texas Wesleyan improved to 25-5 and advanced to the SAC Championship game.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian will now prepare for postseason play as the Evangels are expected to be an at-large selection for the NAIA National Championship Tournament with the Opening Round being held from Mar. 11-12 before moving to the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa from Mar. 17-22.
• The Evangels will find out where they will be competing on Thursday, Mar. 4 as the NAIA will hold its Selection Show at 6 p.m. on its Facebook and YouTube pages.