(NAIA MEDIA RELEASE)
BILLINGS, Mont. – Three-seed MidAmerican Nazarene (Kan.) went on a 17-0 run in the third quarter to take control of the game against seven-seed Providence (Mont.). The run broke the game open on the way to an 83-67 win for the Pioneers that moves them into the quarterfinal round of the 2018 NAIA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship presented by Wells Fargo.
Before that run, the Argo led 30-23 and looked to have the same shooting touch that it used a day earlier to upset defending champs Oklahoma City. UP, however, didn’t make another field goal until over six minutes later.
During the Pioneer’s 17-0 run, Jovana Jovovic scored 12 points, hitting from three and working the paint while going five-for-five from the field.
Alisha Washington scored five points in an eight-point run that brought the MNU lead to 12 points. From that point forward, Washington scored 25 of her 32 total points in the second half, including going 13-for-16 from the free-throw line.
Jovovic finished with 27 points for the Pioneers, combining with Washington to score 59 of the team’s 83. She went 10-for-17 from the field, including five-of-seven from three.
For the second straight night, sophomore guard Jenna Randich carried the Argos on offense. Against OCU, she shot 5-for-10 from three on the way to a career-high 19 points. She essentially matched that effort with another 19 points against MNU while shooting three-for-six from beyond the arch.
MidAmerica Nazarene moves on to the quarterfinals for the first time since 2016 when they won the title. The Pioneers will play one-seed Westmont (Calif.) on Saturday, March 17 at 8:00 p.m.
