Women's Basketball Tops Peru State at Home

Marshall, Mo., (Nov. 23, 2024)- The Missouri Valley College men's and women's basketball teams hosted Peru State (Neb.) in a Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader Saturday evening inside the Burns Athletic Complex.  The women's team pulled away for an 82-63 victory, while the men's team rallied late to secure a 76-70 win.

The women's game started with the two teams trading points to open play in the first quarter.  Junior Sophie Sullivan (Lombard, ill.) put in the first basket for the game for MVC, followed by a three-point play from Junior Sara Ortiz (La Roda, Spain) to keep the team tied at 5-5 with two minutes played.  Field goals from Senior Rajone Callahan (Wichita, Kan.), Ortiz and Sophomore Ricarda Schott (Krefeld, Germany) followed over the next four minutes of play to help keep the score tied at 11-11. After another Schott basket near the three-minute mark, and a pair of Senior Ylenia Exposito (Tenerife, Canary Islands) free throws moments later, the Vikings went on top for the first time, 15-13.  The Bobcats were held scoreless over the final four minutes of play in the quarter, and Junior Gabriela Modeva (Ohrid, Macedonia) added a late basket to stretch the lead out to 17-13 going into the second quarter of play. 

Missouri Valley increased its lead through the first two minutes of the quarter, as Ortiz and Exposito both made field goals.  Peru State made its first basket in more than seven minutes of play in the contest to cut the team's deficit down to 21-15.  Ortiz came through with two made free throws, and a steal from Senior Noa Fernandez (Castaneda, Spain) led to a three-pointer from Sullivan to make give the Vikings a double-digit advantage, 26-15, just past the seven-minute mark.  Callahan and Exposito made field goals through the midway point of the half, but PSC worked the gap down to 30-23 during the stretch of play.  Callahan came down with an offensive rebound, and a layup, while Fernandez made another steal, and capped the possession with a basket to give the team a double-digit lead again, 34-23, with just over three minutes to play in the quarter.  The Vikings used a late layup from Sophomore Jozelynn Bostick (Centralia, Mo.), two free throws from Exposito and a last-second basket from Junior Maleigha Landers (Fort Worth, Texas) to go into the halftime break in front, 40-29.

The Viking lead grew at the start of the third quarter, after a made three-pointer from Exposito and a layup by Ortiz made it a 45-31 score with just over one minutes off the clock.  Missouri Valley went scoreless over a nearly two minutes stretch, and the drought was ended on two made free throws from Modeva.  Sullivan sank another three-pointer near the six-minute mark, then made two free throws to push the lead out to 52-32.  The advantage increased over the next two minutes, with an Exposito three-pointer and Modeva layup making it a 58-34 score with less than four minutes remaining in the third.  Freshman Lexi Fenstermacher (O'Fallon, Mo.) added a three-pointer, to go with a layup just past the two-minute mark keep the team on top, 64-39.  Freshman D'ajha Horton (Aurora, Colo.) capped scoring for MVC in the quarter with a pair of free throws, and the team went into the final quarter of play with a 66-41 lead.

The two teams traded points through most of the fourth quarter, as a field goal from Ortiz and two Callahan free throws made it a 70-45 score with two minutes played.  Missouri Valley held off Peru State late in the game, and eventually secured an 82-63 win.

Exposito led with 20 points to go with five rebounds and six assists.  Ortiz had 13 points and five rebounds, while Sullivan totaled 10 points and four assists.  Missouri Valley held a 46-41 advantage in rebounds, and forced 16 turnovers.

The win moves Missouri Valley to 7-0 overall and 4-0 in the Heart.  Peru State drops to 3-5 on the season and 1-3 in the conference.

Up next, the Viking men's and women's basketball teams travel to Fayette, Mo., for a Heart doubleheader against Central Methodist (Mo.), Tuesday evening.  Women's game at 5:30 p.m., followed by the men's game at 7:30 p.m.

Box Score-Click Here

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.