Women's Basketball Suffers OT Loss to Mount Mercy in Heart Quarterfinals

Marshall, Mo., (Feb. 25, 2025)- The Missouri Valley College women's basketball team hosted Mount Mercy (Iowa) in the quarterfinal round of the Heart of America Athletic Conference Postseason Tournament.  The No. 4 seeded Vikings went to overtime with the No. 5 seeded Mustangs, but fell by a final score of 74-73.

Mount Mercy went in front at the start of the game, at 6-2 with nearly two minutes played.  Senior Noa Fernandez (Castaneda, Spain) opened an 8-0 run with a jumper, followed by three-point shots from Senior Gia Moore (Independence, Mo.) and Senior Ylenia Exposito (Tenerife, Canary Islands) to put the team ahead, 10-6 midway through the quarter.  Freshman D'Ajha Horton (Aurora, Colo.) added the next five points for MVC, and a made field goal by Exposito kept the Vikings on top, 17-13 at the three-minute mark.  The Mustangs worked back to tie the contest at 17-17 less than one minute later, but made baskets by Senior Rajone Callahan (Wichita, Kan.) and Horton sent Missouri Valley in front once again, 21-17, as the quarter went under two minutes remaining.  The final field goal of the quarter went to MMU, and teams went into the second quarter at 21-19.

Missouri Valley held the Mustangs to just one made field goal through nearly four minutes of play to begin the second quarter.  Fernandez put in a made jumper and Junior Sophie Sullivan (Lombard, Ill.) sank a three-point shot during the stretch, as MVC maintained a 26-21 advantage.  The next made basket for the Vikings came on a three-point shot from Horton midway through the quarter to make it a 29-25 score.  The Mustangs cut down their deficit, and tied the contest at 29-29 with three minutes remaining until the break.  With just over one minute left on the clock, MMU moved ahead at 34-31.  Junior Maleigha Landers (Fort Worth, Texas) tied the score on a made three-point shot, and Sullivan added three free throws in the closing moments to put Missouri Valley in front at halftime, 37-34.

The two teams struggled to put points on the scoreboard at the start of the third quarter.  Moore made a layup with nearly three minutes played after the break for the first MVC field goal.  The Vikings went more than five minutes in the quarter with only one made basket until a Horton three-pointer tied the teams at 42-42.  Exposito sent Missouri Valley ahead on a layup near the three-minute mark, and a three-point play by Horton helped MVC to a 47-44 lead with two minutes remaining.  Mount Mercy answered by scoring the next five points, while a pair of Moore free throws tied the teams at 49-49 going into the fourth quarter.

Play in the fourth quarter began with a 9-0 run for MVC, as Moore scored five points, while Horton and Exposito each added a layup to stretch the advantage out to 58-49 with just over two minutes played.  The Vikings went scoreless over the next three minutes, and MMU got back to a 58-56 deficit.  Exposito made a pair of free throws to end the Viking drought and put the lead at 60-56 at the four-minute mark.  The two teams traded points until a jumper from Fernandez made it a 64-61 score as the game went into the final minute of regulation.  Exposito added a free throw, and the lead sat at 65-61.  Free throws were traded until one final make by Moore gave MVC a 68-65 lead in the final seconds.  Mount Mercy got off one more shot before the buzzer, and the three-point attempt was good, tying the score at 68-68, and sending the game into overtime.

Exposito put in a pair of free throws to open scoring in the overtime period, while the Mustangs worked back with six-straight points to move in front, 74-70 midway through.  Moore made the first field goal of the period for MVC, cutting the deficit to 74-73 with 38-seconds to play.  Mount Mercy missed a pair of free throws on its final possession, and Missouri Valley had one more look to win the game.  A last-second three-point shot from Moore missed the mark, and the Vikings fell, 74-73.

Horton led with 20 points to go with seven rebounds.  Moore totaled 17 points and eight rebounds, while Exposito had 16 points.  Missouri Valley forced 14 turnovers in the game, and came down with 14 offensive rebounds.

The loss brings the Viking record to 22-7, while Mount Mercy improves to 17-11.

Missouri Valley will now wait on a possible at-large selection into the 2025 NAIA Women's Basketball National Championship.  The field will be announced by the NAIA March 6.

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.