Lady Blazers drop final game before Holiday break to D-II No. 23 Jefferson College

VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers closed out the 2024 portion of their schedule Tuesday night inside the Physical Education Complex.

The Blazers faced another tough game, this time against NJCAA Division II No. 23 ranked Jefferson College from Hillsboro, Mo.

The Lady Blazers fought hard all night but came out on the wrong end of a 71-60 final score to the Lady Vikings.

VU got off to a good start Tuesday night, opening the game quickly offensively and taking an early 12-6 lead.

Jefferson College would respond back strong with an 11-2 scoring run to take their first lead of the night at 17-14.

The two teams traded baskets the rest of the first quarter with the Lady Vikings holding a narrow 22-20 lead over VU after the first 10 minutes of play.

Jefferson would add on to this early momentum in the second quarter, opening the second period with seven straight points before VU answered back with six straight to cut the deficit to 29-26.

Vincennes would get back within two of the Lady Vikings at 36-34 before Jefferson College scored the final basket of the first half to head into the locker room break leading Vincennes 38-34.

The game remained tight early in the third quarter with VU still playing from behind 50-46 before the Lady Vikings caught fire from three-point range to expand the lead to 63-48 heading into the fourth quarter.

The Lady Blazers stepped up their game defensively in the fourth quarter but were unable to capitalize on the offensive end as Jefferson College closed out the victory over VU 71-60.

VU was led offensively by freshman Emani Washington (Indianapolis, Ind.) who finished with 16 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Freshman Jazmyn Robey (Sellersburg, Ind.) was the next leading scorer for the Lady Blazers, finishing her night with 11 points and eight rebounds.

Freshman Delora Pricop (Satu Mare, Romania) just missed out on another double-double, finishing the game with 10 points and nine rebounds, while freshman Yanni Huggins (Belleville, Mich.) was the fourth VU scorer in double figures with 10 points, six rebounds and three steals.

Freshman Ahmya Thomas (Phoenix, Ariz) finished her night with nine points and a team-high five steals, while sophomore Marta Gutierrez (Alicante, Spain) came off the bench to grab seven rebounds and dish out a team-high five assists.

The Lady Blazers head into the Holiday break with a record of 6-8 on the season, with a 2-0 record in Region 24 play.

Vincennes will return to the floor in 2025 with the Lady Blazers playing host to Volunteer State Community College from Gallatin, Tenn. Saturday, Jan. 4 inside the P.E. Complex. Tip-off time for that game is set for 5 p.m. eastern.

VINCENNES BOX SCORE

VINCENNES (60): Delora Pricop 4-11 0-0 10, Ahmya Thomas 4-16 0-2 9, Jazmyn Robey 4-9 2-2 11, Yanni Huggins 5-8 0-2 10, Emani Washington 5-15 3-4 16, Iris Comesana 1-3 0-0 2, Marta Gutierrez 1-6 0-22, Team 24-68 5-12 60.

Jefferson College – 22   16   25   8 – 71

VU (6-8, 2-0) – 20   14   14   12 – 60

Three-point goals: VU 7 (Washington 3, Pricop 2, Thomas, Robey). Rebounds: VU 41 (Pricop 9). Assists: VU 16 (Gutierrez 5). Steals: VU 13 (Thomas 5). Blocked Shots: VU 2 (Robey, Huggins). Turnovers: VU 23. Personal Fouls: VU 15. Fouled out: Pricop.