Pride dominant in 93-61 Heart quarterfinal win over Evangel

DUBUQUE, Iowa - In the opening matchup of the Heart of American Athletic Conference Tournament, the Clarke University women's basketball team cruised on their way to a 93-61 victory over Evangel University on Thursday night.

The Pride will clicking on all cylinders and the Kehl Center crowd was rocking as CU outscored the Valor in every quarter, including posting double-digit advantages in the first and second quarters to double up EU by a 50-25 score at the halftime break.

Efficiency and ball movement were the key for Clarke as they shot 36-of-58 (62.1%) from the field, 7-of-15 (46.7%) from three, and 14-of-20 (70%) from the free throw line as they also finished with 25 assists on the 36 made baskets in the game. On the opposite end of the floor the defense was staggering for CU as they held Evangel to just 22-of-70 (31.4%) shooting from the field and 5-of-21 (23.8%) shooting from three point range as no Valor player scored more than nine points.

Leading the charge on the scoring and assisting front was Giana Michels as she finished with a game-high tying 17 points and game-high seven assists while adding four rebounds and a steal. Michels was joined with a game-high 17 by Taylor Haase as the sophomore came off the bench to go 8-for-11 (72.7%) working well in the paint.

The remainder of the starting lineup along with Michels had a strong performance in all areas, including rebounding as the Pride outrebounded Evangel 49-25, gabbing 40 defensive rebounds on the 48 Valor missed shots. Emma Kelchen's 15-point, 10-rebound double-double was her fifth double-double of the season after four in the regular season.

Tina Ubl and Nicole McDermott were up to their usual ways stuffing the stat sheet as Ubl also poured in 15 points while grabbing six rebounds, adding two assists, a steal, and a blocked shot as McDermott was a rebound away from a double-double with 10 points, nine rebounds, and adding five assists, four steals, and a blocked shot of her own.

The fifth and final player in double figures for CU was Mya Merschman as she added 11 off the bench on a perfect 3-for-3 night from three point range and 4-of-6 (66.7%) overall. Rounding out the starting lineup for Clarke was Skylar Culbertson as she didn't need to attempt a shot to have a productive night with six rebounds and four assists in 20 minutes after dealing with early foul trouble.

Clarke women's basketball will move on to the semifinals of the Heart Tournament as there will be a rematch of the 2021 championship game with MidAmerica Nazarene heading to the Kehl Center for a 12:00 p.m. CT scheduled tip against the Pioneers.