Women's Basketball Pulls Away For Win at William Penn

Oskaloosa, Iowa, (Jan. 22, 2024)- The Missouri Valley College men's and women's basketball teams traveled to Oskaloosa, Iowa, Wednesday evening, for a Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader against William Penn (Iowa).  The women's team pulled away in the second half for a 64-42 win.  The men's team led throughout and earned an 87-82 victory.

Missouri Valley went in front quickly at the start of the women's game on a three-pointer from Senior Gia Moore (Independence, Mo.).  William Penn was held scoreless through nearly three minutes of play, while Senior Ylenia Exposito (Tenerife, Canary Islands) added the next pair of baskets to help MVC build an 8-2 advantage midway through the quarter.  Moore added the final field goal of the quarter for the Vikings, with more than two minute remaining, to make it a 12-4 score.  William Penn followed with a 6-0 run to end play in the first quarter, and close its deficit to 12-10.

The second quarter started with WPU continuing its run, outscoring Missouri Valley by a 7-0 margin through four minutes of play to go in front, 17-12.  Sophomore Ricarda Schott (Krefeld, Germany) put in the first basket of the quarter past the midway mark, while Senior Rajone Callahan (Wichita, Kan.) added a layup to bring MVC back to a 17-16 deficit at the four-minute mark.  William Penn stayed on top through the next stretch of play, at 20-16.  The low-scoring first half was capped on a Schott jumper with more than two minutes left to play and the Vikings trailed at halftime, 20-18.

Scoring in the third quarter started on a layup from WPU, but the Vikings responded with six-straight points, which included four points from Schott and a steal and layup by Moore, to send MVC ahead, 24-22, with three minutes played after the restart.  The two teams traded points through a 27-27 score midway through the quarter, and the score remained tied at 31-31 with just over three minutes remaining.  Missouri Valley took over the game from there.  A  run was started on a three-pointer from Moore.  Callahan added a jumper, and Moore made another field goal.  Schott scored the next five points to end a 12-0 stretch.  William Penn added a late basket as the third quarter came to an end, but the Vikings held a 43-33 advantage.

Missouri Valley continued to increase its lead to open the fourth quarter of play, as Moore scored seven points, Callahan added a basket and Junior Sophie Sullivan (Lombard, Ill.) sank a three-pointer to close a 12-0 run and make it a 55-33 score near the midway mark of the fourth.  The two teams traded points through the rest of play in the game.  Sophomore Jozelynn Bostick (Centralia, Mo.) added a late three-pointer and Moore closed scoring for MVC with four made free throws.  The Vikings won by a final score of 64-42.

Moore led with a season-high 24 points to go with eight rebounds.  Schott had 14 points, and Exposito recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 12 points and a season-high 12 rebounds.  Missouri Valley limited William Penn to 26-percent shooting from the floor and held a 49-34 advantage in rebounds.

Missouri Valley improves to 16-3 on the season and 12-3 in the Heart.  William Penn drops to 3-16 overall and  2-13 in the conference.  The Vikings sweep the regular season series having won the previous contest between the teams, 74-63, back on Nov. 20.

Up next, the Viking basketball teams travel to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for a Heart doubleheader against Mount Mercy (Iowa), Saturday afternoon.  Women's game starts at 12 p.m., followed by the men's game at 2 p.m.

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.