The Lady Cougars (6-0) got off to a good start in the game as MVNU scored the first nine points of the game and built a 14-4 lead less than four and a half minutes into the contest.

However, the Beavers (1-3) began to chip away at the lead and pulled to within two points on two occasions including 26-24 with five minutes left until halftime. That would be as close as Blackburn would get, though, as the Lady Cougars closed the half on a 6-2 run to take a 32-26 lead at the break.

Sophomore center Amanda Himes (left) led MVNU with 11 points in the first half, while freshman forward Alexis Harkins added six points and seven rebounds. The Lady Cougars shot just 32.6 percent from the field (14-for-43), 8.3 percent from three-point range (1-for-12), and 50.0 percent from the free throw line (3-for-6). However, MVNU committed just two turnovers and forced 15 to help offset the poor shooting in the first 20 minutes.

Sierra Shipley paced the Beavers with 13 points and seven rebounds in the first half, while Natalia Gregory tossed in five points off the bench. Blackburn shot 40.7 percent from the field (11-for-27), 33.3 percent from three-point range (2-for-6), and made both of its free throw attempts.

The second half proved to be a different story, though, as the Lady Cougars roared out of the locker room on a 13-1 run to take a 45-27 advantage with just over three minutes gone by.

From that point on, Blackburn would get no closer than 49-35 at the 13:45 mark as MVNU out-scored the Beavers 52-23 in the second half on the way to cruising to the 84-49 victory.

“Any time you play a game after a holiday break and a little time off as a coach you are always worried about your team being a little rusty,” said MVNU coach Steve Gregory. “We left a lot of plays out on the court in the first half. Then, we really cleaned things up in the second half and really pulled away from them. (Blackburn) just seemed to run out of gas and we really got things clicking.”

“Amanda and Rachel provided a nice one-two punch for us,” Gregory added. “Whenever you can get the inside-outside game working on both ends, it really puts a strain on the opposing defense. Everyone contributed to this win.”

Himes finished with a game-high 28 points and 12 rebounds to lead MVNU, while senior guard Rachel Fiely just missed a double-double with 17 points, nine assists, five rebounds, and four steals. Harkins added 11 points and eight rebounds, and sophomore guard Lauren Johnson tallied six points, four assists, and three steals. Senior wing Bethany Hughes also contributed five points and six rebounds off the bench. The Lady Cougars shot 35.6 percent from the field (31-for-87), 23.1 percent from three-point range (6-for-26), and 69.6 percent from the free throw line (16-for-23). MVNU committed just six turnovers in the game while forcing 26.

Shipley finished with 26 points and nine rebounds to lead the Beavers. Gregory and Lauren Woelfel added five points apiece, and Aerial Hawkey grabbed eight rebounds. Blackburn shot 37.3 percent from the field (19-for-51), 33.3 percent from three-point range (3-for-9), and 57.1 percent from the free throw line (8-for-14).

The Lady Cougars will return to action on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. CST when MVNU will take on host Trinity International (3-5).