Lady Eagles Drop Close Battle to No. 19 Mid-America Christian

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (11/18/23) - The Williams Baptist University women's basketball team dropped a close game on the road Saturday afternoon to No. 19 Mid-America Christian by the score of 102-97.

A matchup between two of the nation's best scoring offenses did not disappoint as the game featured 20 lead changes.  WBU shot 45.8 percent from the field and 32.0 percent from three-point range, while MACU shot 46.8 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from beyond the arc.   The game had 20 lead changes and nine ties.

Kaylee Clark and Charmen Taylor led the Lady Eagles with 23 points each, while  Carmen Taylor finished with 21.  Taylor Hooten also contributed 11 points and 10 assists for a double-double.

The score was tied at 93-93 with 3:15 to go in the game, but MACU took the lead on a layup and the Lady Eagles were dealt a setback when Clark picked up her fifth foul with 2:42 remaining. Kylee Scheer converted both free throws for the Evangels to push their advantage to five and WBU would not recover. 

Charmen Taylor made it a one possession game with seven seconds to go at 100-97, but a Jaci Calavan would sink both of her free throws to ice the game to kill the chance of an upset.

The Lady Eagles led 73-72 at the end of the third quarter thanks to a foul drawn by Clark and two made free throws.  A Carmen Taylor layup would give WBU its largest lead of the day at 77-72 in the fourth quarter, but Calavan would tie the game back at 80-80 with a three-pointer with 7:54 left in the period.

MACU got out to its largest lead of the afternoon at the end of the first quarter thanks to a 13-0 run powered by Calavan and Kylee.  The Evangels led 30-20 at the end of one.

At the start of the second quarter, the Eagles fired back with an 11-3 run of their own to bring the game back within one possession.  The two teams would trade made shots until the halftime buzzer.  WBU would go into the locker room down 52-49.

The Lady Eagles will pick back up on the road on Tuesday, Nov. 21, making the return trip to Crowley's Ridge College in Paragould, Ark.  Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.