Fayette, Mo. - The Central Methodist women's basketball team fell to Missouri Valley College in their last game of 2020 by a score of 65-59 Wednesday night in Puckett Fieldhouse.
The Eagles conclude 2020 with a 5-4 overall record and a 4-4 mark in conference action. The Vikings improve to 6-6 overall and 4-6 in Heart play.
Missouri Valley started the game strong, opening up a 13-4 lead with 6:06 left in the quarter. However, Central rallied as Vanda Cuamba tied the game at 21-21 with 45 seconds left in the quarter before Valley scored four of the next five points to take a 25-22 lead.
At the beginning of the second period, a three-point basket by Michelle Nicholls and points by both Vanda Cuamba and Leaianya Massenat gave the Eagles' the lead for the first time in the game with 7:27 left before halftime. Central held a slim 38-36 lead entering the locker room.
The Vikings started the third quarter strong, posting a 12-0 run in the first four minutes to take a double-digit lead. CMU remained behind for the remainder of the period, trailing 53-45 entering the fourth.
Three-point shots by Massenat and Nicholls trimmed the Vikings' lead to three points with 5:35 left in the game. Trailing by three with a little over two minutes remaining, CMU was looking for a defensive stop late, before MVC converted on a basket in the paint and added a free throw to take the six-point victory.
Massenat led the lady Eagles with 19 points, seven rebounds, and four steals. Cuamba collected her third double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds. She also added two blocks and a steal. The other two Eagles that reached double digits were Nicholls and Leah Johnson with 12 and 10 points respectively. Johnson also picked up six rebounds and two blocks while Nicholls grabbed five rebounds and three steals.
As a team, the Eagles shot 34.3-percent from the field while the Vikings shot 39.2-percent. From the charity stripe, Central made only 11 trips, converting on six-of-11 free throw attempts.
MVC won the battle of the boards, grabbing 44 rebounds compared to 41 rebounds CMU
The lady Eagles will open up 2021 in Puckett Fieldhouse Saturday, Jan. 2 at 3:00 p.m. against College of the Ozarks in a non-conference matchup.
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