The Lindenwood women's basketball team capped off the 2015-16 regular season with a 73-63 win over Lincoln on Saturday afternoon in Jefferson City, Mo. to claim the final spot in the MIAA Tournament.
 
Lindenwood jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead after great passing and efficient offensive trips down the court.  Kassidy Gengenbacher hit a three-pointer to put Lindenwood up 10-2, and later received a great pass from Jenny Rocha to put the Lady Lions up 14-5.  The Blue Tigers pulled within six points, but a Kylie Ferguson three-pointer extended the lead to nine with 3:22 remaining in the first quarter.  The Lady Lions shot the ball efficiently in the first 10 minutes by posting a 52.9 field goal percentage, and they held a 24-16 lead.  Gengenbacher and Rocha led the team with seven points apiece.  Lindenwood scored 12 points in the paint, and scored six points off of six forced turnovers.
 
Gengenbacher opened up the second quarter with a three-pointer to give Lindenwood an 11-point lead.  Lincoln responded with a jumper, but the Lady Lions had back-to-back buckets by the freshmen CeCe Rapp and Charisse Williams.  The Blue Tigers fought back to pull within six points after a three-pointer and some free throws.  Ferguson halted the short run by the Blue Tigers, as she nailed her second three-pointer of the game to give the Lady Lions a 34-25 lead.  Near the end of the half, Williams hit a three-pointer, and the Blue Tigers answered with a long ball of their own.  Rocha dropped two free throws with five seconds remaining, and the Lady Lions went into the half with a 42-32 lead.
 
Lindenwood was shooting well from the field at 48.4 percent, with a 41.7 percent three-point shooting, but was just 7-for-11 from the free throw line.  Gengenbacher had 10 points at the half, Ferguson had nine points, and Rocha tallied nine points at the break.  Rocha led the squad with four assists, while Bri Wilber tallied four steals in just one half of play.
 
Rapp hit a jumper just 10 seconds in to the second half, and Williams later scored to up the Lady Lions up 46-34.  Lindenwood struggled to hold a comfortable lead after making just two of its next four free throws allowed Lincoln to pull within seven for a 48-41 scored with 6:48 to go in the third quarter.  The pace of play slowed down, until the four minute mark with the intensity picked up again.  The Blue Tigers continued to give the Lady Lions fits, the Lindenwood show toughness and focus, as they held a 58-50 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
 
Ferguson was the co-leader in points (12) due in large part to her three three-pointers.  Gengenbacher also had 12 points heading into the final quarter of play, and Rocha had 11 points while still standing at four in assists.  Lindenwood was in a good position in the game, but needed to bear down to maintain the slim lead.
 
Lincoln quickly battled back to score five straight points to make it a three-point game.  Gengenbacher put a halt to the run with a jump shot at the free throw line to give Lindenwood a 60-55 lead.  The Blue Tigers clawed their way to cut the Lindenwood lead to two points.  Rapp hit a jumper to give the Lady Lions a buffer, and Gengenbacher hit a big three-pointer at the five minute mark to give Lindenwood a 65-58 lead.  Rocha hit a jumper, Gengenbacher made 1-of-2 from the line, and Ferguson scored on a layup to give Lindenwood a 70-58 lead with 2:28 to go in the game.  The Lady Lions closed out the regular season finale with a 73-63 win over Lincoln to earn a spot in the MIAA Tournament.
 
Lindenwood finished the game with 34 points in the paint and forced 19 turnovers.  Gengenbacher scored 18 points, and grabbed six rebounds.  Ferguson dropped 14 points, Williams tallied 11 points, and Rocha scored 13 points with four assists.

Head Coach Tony Francis touched on how he feels to be surrounded by such a great team.

"I'm a very emontional coach right now," said Francis, "because of the strength and character of this group."  Francis added, "In a day and age where most people give up in the face of adversity, this group stayed true to the identity of our program."  Francis said passionately, "I love this team."
 
The win breaks a 16-game losing streak and gives Lindenwood an 8-20 overall record and a 4-18 record in the MIAA.  The Lady Lions will travel to Edmond, Okla. on Monday for a 7 p.m. game against Central Oklahoma.