Sioux City, Iowa - The No. 1 Central Methodist Women's Basketball program fended off an upset bid over No. 5 Texas Wesleyan, 74-68, in the NAIA National Tournament Round of 16 Monday afternoon in Sioux City, Iowa.
The Eagles push their unblemished record to 34-0 and advance to Wednesday's National Quarterfinals. The Rams see their season come to an end with a final record of 27-6.
Central found themselves in a defensive stalemate in the first half, as the Eagles trailed 24-22 midway through the second quarter. CMU would close the half on a 10-4 scoring run to take a 32-28 lead into the halftime break.
The Eagles' offense cruised in the first six minutes of the third quarter, going on a 17-6 scoring run to push their lead to 49-34.
Texas Wesleyan closed the gap to two points at the 4:08 mark of the fourth, 61-59. But a three from senior guard Daryna Bachkarova a minute later extended Central's lead to 64-59.
It was a back and forth affair in the closing minutes of the final quarter. Leading 70-66 with under a minute remaining, Bachkarova nailed another three from the corner to seal the victory.
Leianya Massenat converted a pair of three throws with 10 seconds left, making the final score 74-68 in favor of the Eagles.
Massenat led all scorers with 24 points paired with six rebounds, four assists, and four steals. Daryna Bachkarova also landed in double figures with 21 points, including four three-point baskets. The senior from Minsk, Belarus added four rebounds, four assists, and two steals in 37 minutes of action.
Zutorya Cook played every minute for Central, tallying 13 points on 50 percent shooting from the floor. Despite battling foul trouble in the later stages of the second and fourth quarters, Leah Johnson nearly tallied a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds. In addition, the Ewing, N.J. native collected four blocks in the victory.
The smallest player on the floor, Jaicia Canady, led the Eagles' rebounding efforts, grabbing a team-high 11 rebounds. Senior Robin Beck also provided key minutes off the bench, grabbing six rebounds of which five came on the defensive glass.
Central advances to the NAIA National Quarterfinals, where they will face No. 3 seeded Marian (Ind.) Wednesday, March 15 at 11:00 a.m. It is a rematch of last year's quarterfinals, which saw the Eagles defeat the Knights, 72-62.
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