Lady Blazers fall twice to Top-25 opponents at Lady Raider Classic

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers suffered their first two losses of the season over the weekend, falling to No. 6-ranked Three Rivers Community College 82-67 Friday night and 84-71 to No. 21-ranked Moberly Area Community College Saturday afternoon.

The Trailblazers began the Lady Raider Classic by taking on host and No. 6-ranked Three Rivers Community College Friday night.

Vincennes held tough and hung with the Raiders in the first half, leading midway through the second quarter, before Three Rivers closed out the half strong to take a 43-35 into the locker room.

Three Rivers continued to ride this momentum, beginning the second half on an 11-2 scoring run to take a 17-point lead.

The Lady Raider lead would grow to as many as 23 before the VU shooters found some open space in the fourth quarter.

The Lady Blazers won the fourth quarter, outscoring the Raiders 19-11, but were not able to fully erase the Three Rivers lead as Vincennes fell for the first time this season 82-67.

Vincennes was led by freshmen guards Cherrelle Newsom (Indianapolis, Ind.) and Kylee Shelton (Bloomfield, Ind.) who finished with 13 points each. Shelton also led the Blazers with five rebounds and dished out three assists on the game.

Sophomore Macy Michels (Teutopolis, Ill.) also reached double-digits in the points column, ending the game with 11 points while grabbing five rebounds and adding three assists.

The Trailblazer scorers came away with 11 made three-pointers in the game with Newsom, Shelton and sophomore Laila Grant (Derwood, Md.) all hitting three each.

Laila Grant ended her game with nine points, five rebounds, three assists and a pair steals for the Blue and Gold.

Vincennes got off to a slow start Saturday against the Lady Greyhounds of Moberly Area, falling behind by double-digits early, before two late baskets cut the deficit to eight points at the end of the first quarter.

The Lady Trailblazers gained momentum throughout the second quarter, starting the quarter on a 12-5 scoring run to come within a point of Moberly Area.

Freshman guard Chanice Willis (Champaign, Ill.) drove to the basket on a fast break at the buzzer to hit a layup and give Vincennes their first lead of the game at halftime 35-34.

Moberly Area took their game to another level in the third quarter and regained the lead from the Blazers to head into the fourth quarter leading 59-47.

VU attempted another comeback in the fourth quarter but were not able to cut into the Greyhounds' lead as Moberly Area came away with the 84-71 victory.

Laila Grant led the Vincennes offense all game, ending with a team-leading 22 points, to go along with four rebounds and three assists.

Freshman Trinitee Harris (Elkhart, Ind.) reached double figures in the scoring column for the first time this season, ending with 10 points on a perfect eight for eight shooting from the free throw line. Harris also led the Blazers with three steals.

Kylee Shelton came off the bench to score 10 points for the Lady Blazers as well, while also adding a team-high four assists.

Sophomore Nina Blade (Milwaukee, Wis.) jumped back into the starting lineup and finished with five points and a team-high nine rebounds.

The Lady Trailblazers will hit the road this Tuesday, Nov. 16, when the travel to take on Lindsey Wilson JV in Columbia, Ky. Tip-off time is scheduled for 8 p.m. eastern.

Vincennes will return to the P.E. Complex next weekend when the Blazers host the VU Classic Friday, Nov. 19 and Saturday 20.

VU will face off against Indiana Tech JV Friday and Highland Saturday. Tip-off both days is 5 p.m. eastern.

VINCENNES BOX SCORE

GAME ONE

VINCENNES (67): Trinitee Harris 1-4 0-0 2, Cherrelle Newsom 4-12 2-2 13, Candela Lascorz 3-5 2-2 8, Macy Michels 5-9 1-1 11, Laila Grant 3-11 0-0 9, Noni Russell 0-2 1-2 1, Chanice Willis 0-0 0-2 0, Day Thornton 3-6 0-0 8, Nina Blade 0-1 0-0 0, Elena Aznar 0-2 0-0 0, Guadalupe Lopez 1-2 0-0 2, Kylee Shelton 5-8 0-0 13, Anete Bluma 0-4 0-0 0, Team 25-66 6-9 67.

Vincennes (3-1) – 17  18  13  19 – 67

Three Rivers – 21  22  28  11 – 82

Three-point goals: VU 11 (Newsom 3, Grant 3, Shelton 3, Thornton 2). Rebounds: VU 32 (Grant 5, Michels 5, Shelton 5). Assists: VU 20 (Bluma 4). Steals: VU 9 (Lascorz 3). Blocked shots: VU 1 (Lascorz). Turnovers: VU 21. Personal Fouls: VU 17. Fouled out: None.

GAME TWO

VINCENNES (71): Trinitee Harris 1-4 8-8 10, Cherrelle Newsom 3-10 2-2 8, Nina Blade 2-4 1-2 5, Macy Michels 1-5 0-0 2, Laila Grant 8-14 2-4 22, Chanice Willis 1-1 0-0 2, Day Thornton 2-4 2-2 6, Candela Lascorz 0-0 0-0 0, Elena Aznar 1-1 0-0 2, Guadalupe Lopez 0-2 0-0 0, Kylee Shelton 4-7 0-0 10, Anete Bluma 1-1 1-2 4, Team 24-53 16-20 71.

Vincennes (3-2) – 9  26  12  24 – 71

Moberly Area – 17  17  25  25 – 84

Three-point goals: VU 7 (Grant 4, Shelton 2, Bluma 1). Rebounds: VU 25 (Blade 9). Assists: VU 14 (Shelton 4). Steals: VU 7 (Harris 3). Blocked Shots: VU 2 (Blade, Lascorz). Turnovers: VU 24. Personal Fouls: VU 23. Fouled out: None.