Lady Blazers comeback attempt falls short at Jefferson College

HILLSBORO, Mo. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers were on the road Saturday afternoon in a rematch of an early season meeting with the Lady Vikings of Jefferson College.

The Lady Blazers trailed by as many as 28 before rallying back in the fourth quarter but ultimately ran out of time as the Lady Vikings got their revenge on their home floor winning over VU 60-56.

Vincennes got off to a quick start at Jefferson, jumping out to an early five-point lead before the host Vikings quickly rallied back to take the lead.

VU would battle until Jefferson ended the first quarter on a 10-0 scoring run, giving the Lady Vikings a 24-14 advantage after the first 10 minutes of play.

Vincennes looked to try to eat away at the deficit but were unable to put together a scoring run in the second quarter as Jefferson College closed out the first half on an 8-0 scoring run to take a 41-24 lead into the locker room.

The Vikings continued to add to their lead in the second half, out scoring the Lady Blazers 16-5 to start the third quarter, growing their lead to 57-29.

Vincennes would chip away at this deficit before entering the fourth quarter however, using a 6-1 scoring run to head into the fourth quarter trailing 58-35.

The VU defense really picked up in the fourth quarter as Vincennes worked their way back into the game by opening the final period with 17 unanswered points.

Jefferson College was finally able to get a basket to go down with 41 seconds left to play, their first field goal since the 2:56 mark in the third quarter, meaning the Lady Blazers held the Lady Vikings without a basket for a stretch of 12 minutes and 15 seconds.

Vincennes continued to rally late, cutting the deficit to four points but just ran out of time as VU fell to the host Lady Vikings by the final score of 60-56.

The Lady Trailblazers outscored Jefferson College 21-2 in the fourth quarter Saturday, the fewest points a VU Lady Trailblazer team has allowed in a quarter since December of 2018.

Saturday marks the sixth time the Lady Blazers have held a team to just two points in a quarter since the NJCAA switched to quarters in women's basketball in 2015.

VU just missed setting a new school record with this quarter, Vincennes allowed Olive-Harvey to score just a single point in the second quarter in their meeting on Nov. 3, 2018.

The Lady Blazers were led offensively off the bench by sophomore Chanice Willis (Champaign, Ill.), who scored 13 of her team-high 15 points in the second half, while also leading the Blazers with six steals and dishing out three assists.

Freshman Maycee Lange (Vincennes, Ind.) was the only other VU scorer in double-figures Saturday, finishing with 11 points, eight rebounds, four blocks and three steals.

Sophomores Cherrelle Newsom (Indianapolis, Ind.) and Daylynn Thornton (Lafayette, Ind.) each finished with seven points, with Newsom leading the Blazers with six assists and Thornton adding three rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Freshman Brie Miller (Greencastle, Ind.) came off the bench to add six points and four rebounds for Vincennes.

The Lady Blazers will jump back into Region 24 play as they begin next week on the road at John A. Logan College in Carterville, Ill. Wednesday, Dec. 14. Tip-off time for this Region 24 showdown is set for 6 p.m. eastern.

VINCENNES BOX SCORE

VINCENNES (60): Kennadi Harris 2-6 0-0 4, Cherrelle Newsom 3-16 0-0 7, Daylynn Thornton 3-9 1-2 7, Nyre Williams 1-8 0-0 2, Maycee Lange 5-15 0-0 11, Chanice Willis 7-13 1-2 15, Elena Tzelou 0-0 0-0 0, Katrina Litte 2-5 0-0 4, Ra'Mya Milton 0-0 0-0 0, Brie Miller 3-4 0-0 6, Team 26-76 2-4 56.

Jefferson College – 24   17   17   2 – 60

VU (8-5, 2-1) – 14   10   11   21 – 56

Three-point goals: VU 2 (Newsom, Lange). Rebounds: VU 30 (Lange 8). Assists: VU 16 (Newsom 6). Steals: VU 19 (Willis 6). Blocked shots: VU 8 (Lange 4). Turnovers: VU 14. Personal Fouls: VU 17. Fouled out: None.