The first half went back and forth with MVNU (26-9) taking a slim 35-32 lead to the locker room at the break. Sophomore post Amanda Himes (left) led the Lady Cougars with 15 points and five rebounds in the first half, while freshman forward Alexis Harkins added six points and senior guard Rachel Fiely dished out five assists. MVNU shot 51.6 percent from the field (16-for-31), just 20.0 percent from three-point range (2-for-10), and just 20.0 percent from the free throw line (1-for-5).

The Evangels were led by Karina Trindade, Treasure McCoy, and April Hale with six points apiece in the first half with Trindade grabbing six rebounds. Mid-America Christian shot 36.7 percent from the field (11-for-30), 41.7 percent from three-point range (5-for-12), and 71.4 percent from the free throw line (5-for-7).

The game continued to be back and forth for the first five minutes of the second half. Then, with 14:22 left in the game, Harkins put the Lady Cougars on top 41-39 and start a 15-5 run over the next seven minutes that would give MVNU control of the game with a 56-44 lead.

From that point on, the Evangels would get no closer than eight points the rest of the way. Meanwhile, the Lady Cougars built as much as a 17-point lead before settling for the 70-55 victory.

“Our kids played outstanding, especially in the second half,” said MVNU coach Steve Gregory. “They played aggressively and made a lot of outstanding defensive plays, forcing turnover after turnover. They battled hard and now find themselves just one win away from a national championship.”

Himes posted another double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Lady Cougars. Fiely added 17 points and six assists, while Harkins finished with 15 points. MVNU shot 40.4 percent from the field (23-for-57), 28.6 percent from three-point range (6-for-21), and 62.1 percent from the free throw line (18-for-29). The Lady Cougars also forced 28 turnovers.

“Amanda did her usual work with a double-double,” said Gregory. “She was unstoppable on the low block which forced (Mid-America) to double team her. She made great decisions on when to take the shot and when to kick it out to an open teammate. Rachel really stepped her offense up in the second half by burying two huge treys. She was tremendous in initiating our fastbreak and finding the open player.”

Tiphani Eaves paced Mid-America Christian with 13 points, while Trindade finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds. The Evangels shot 32.7 percent from the field (17-for-52), 34.8 percent from three-point range (8-for-23), and 72.2 percent from the free throw line (13-for-18).

The Lady Cougars will now advance to the championship game on Saturday to face No. 5 seed Palm Beach Atlantic (Fla.) University, who knocked off top-seeded Emmanuel (Ga.) University 48-47 in the other semifinal game by going the length of the court and making a game-winning layup with less than five seconds left.

In one way, MVNU will be looking for history to repeat itself as the Lady Cougars got an at-large berth into the 2001 NCCAA National Tournament after losing in the NCCAA East Region title game to Nyack (N.Y.) College on a three-pointer at the buzzer that year. MVNU then went on to capture the 2001 NCCAA national title. However, the Lady Cougars will also be looking to make the third time the charm as MVNU has already fallen in two championship games this year - the American Mideast Conference Tournament and the NCCAA East Region championship game.

“Our seniors are playing strong, taking care of their roles, and getting us to the championship game,” said Gregory. “I can only envision one way to end this season and that is on a winning note and sending our seniors out in a blaze of glory.”

The NCCAA National Tournament championship game will get under way at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday. The game will also be carried live on WNZR 90.9 FM and http://wnzr.fm/sports.html with Josh Wood and Dave Parsons calling all the action.