SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Showing plenty of promise and grit, the University of Evansville women's basketball team battled with No. 18 Missouri State before falling, 76-62, on the road in MVC competition in Springfield, Mo. on Friday night.

Evansville was led by freshman Abby Feit in both points and rebounds as Feit scored a game-high 17 points and recorded nine rebounds. Two other Aces finished in double figures as junior Lola Bracy tallied 12 points and a career-high eight assists to go along with five rebounds, while sophomore A'Niah Griffin hit two three-pointers on her way to 10 points and five boards. Alex Willard finished as the high-scorer for the Lady Bears, scoring 14 points.

Impressive second and fourth quarter performances against the nation's 18th-ranked team helped buoy the Aces.

It was a 9-3 lead to begin for the Lady Bears as both sides struggled offensively in the opening portions of the contest. The Aces trailed by as many as nine in the first quarter, but closed back withing six as sophomore Anna Newman drained a three in the waning second of the quarter to cut Missouri State's lead to 17-11.
 

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Box Score (PDF)

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The second quarter saw Evansville keep pace with the Lady Bears every step of the way. After Missouri State pushed its lead to 10 with four-straight points to start the period, Evansville answered with a triple by sophomore A'Niah Newman to cut the deficit back to seven. An important stretch for the Aces came with seven minutes left in the half. Redshirt junior Jada Poland scored five-straight points, including a three-point play that moved Evansville within three at 25-22 and went to the break down just six.

The Lady Bears took control in the third quarter, scoring 10-straight points out of the break that inflated their lead to 16 at 44-28. Evansville struggled to keep control of the ball, turning it over five times in the quarter and being out-rebounded 16-6, trailing 59-41 heading into the fourth period.

The Aces didn't go away in the fourth, continuing to fight. Despite trailing by as many as 20 in the early portion of the quarter, Evansville closed back within 12 in the final minutes with an impressive late effort in Missouri State's 76-62 win.

Evansville closes the weekend on Sunday with a road trip to take on Southern Illinois at 2 PM.
 

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