Valparaiso (13-18, 9-11 MVC)
2025 Credit Union 1 MVC Women's Basketball Tournament
Game #32 - March 13, 2025 - noon
vs. Bradley (13-18, 7-13 MVC)
Ford Center - Evansville, Ind.

Next Up in Valpo Basketball: The Valpo women's basketball team opens postseason play from Evansville, Ind. Thursday afternoon, as the eighth-seeded Beacons take on ninth-seeded Bradley in opening-round action. Valpo will have to win four games over four days to claim the tournament title.

Previously: The Beacons dropped their regular season finale Saturday afternoon at the ARC to UNI by an 85-73 final. Leah Earnest broke the program's career rebounding record in the second quarter of the game and ended the contest with 31 points, one off her career high.

Following Valpo Basketball: Video: ESPN+ - Scott Warmann and Laura Leonard
Radio: WVUR (95.1 FM, Valparaiso) - Eli Conklin and Grayson Merchant
Streaming Audio: TuneIn app
Links for live coverage: Available via ValpoAthletics.com

Head Coach Mary Evans: Mary Evans is in her seventh year at the helm of the program in 2024-25 and owns a record of 73-134. Evans' first six seasons at the helm have seen Valpo's six of the top-eight single-season 3-pointers made marks, including each of the top five, while defensively, her teams have racked up steals at a high rate, averaging at least 7.7 steals/game in five of her six seasons. Under her guidance, Valpo players have earned an MVC Sixth Player of the Year honor, five All-Conference accolades, three All-Freshman/Newcomer Team awards and three All-Defensive Team honors.

Series Notes: Bradley leads the all-time series between the two programs by a 12-11 mark, but it has been Valpo coming away with the victory in each of the last eight meetings, sweeping the season series each of the last four seasons. This season, Leah Earnest scored 27 points and grabbed eight rebounds in a 59-52 win in Valpo and then hit a game-winning 3-pointer with 6.4 seconds to play in a 66-64 win in Peoria. Notably, this is the first time that the two programs have met in postseason play.

@ValpoWBB...
...and @ValleyHoops
- Valpo met its preseason projection, as the Beacons were picked to finish in eighth place in the MVC preseason poll, totaling 193 points to edge out Indiana State.
- Valpo is in its eighth season as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference.
- The Valley is ranked ninth in the NET this year after being ranked 13th last season. In Valpo's time in the MVC, the conference has been ranked as high as seventh in NET (2020-21).

...versus UNI
- The two teams were deadlocked at 9-9 approaching the midway point of the opening quarter before the Panthers went on a 12-0 run to gain separation.
- Maci Rhoades hit a corner 3-pointer to beat the first period buzzer to bring the Beacons with 23-14 after 10 minutes.
- Valpo was perfect from the field in the second quarter, hitting all eight of its field goal attempts, including six 3-pointers. But the Beacons committed 10 turnovers in the period as well.
- When the dust settled, it ended up being an even 24-24 score in the second quarter, leaving Valpo trailing 47-38 into halftime.
- Valpo had just one field goal over a stretch of nearly six minutes in the third quarter, allowing the Panthers to go on a 10-2 run to extend their lead to 18.
- UNI led 65-49 with 10 minutes to play and pushed its lead to as many as 24 points in the fourth quarter.
- Leah Earnest had one of the top offensive games of her career in her final home game, finishing 10-of-13 from the field — including 3-of-5 from 3-point range — and 8-of-9 from the foul line to lead all players with 31 points, one off her career high.
- Earnest also paced all players with eight rebounds, the fourth of which broke Valpo's career record.
- Nevaeh Jackson finished with 19 points, including four 3-pointers, and was one off her career high with four assists.
- Rhoades connected on three 3-pointers for the second straight game as she hit double figures with 11 points. The junior also tied her career high with four assists.
- Valpo shot a season-best 53.2% from the field and was 12-for-29 from 3-point range, matching its season high for 3-pointers made.
- The Beacons committed 21 turnovers, however, and forced just 14 UNI miscues, only five of which were steals — both tied for the team's second-fewest of the season. The Panthers held a 33-16 advantage in points off turnovers.

...versus Drake
- Valpo led 14-4 5:28 into the game and held a 20-15 lead at the end of the opening period.
- Drake ended the first half on a 15-0 run to lead 35-24 at intermission.
- Drake's lead hit its apex at 47-27 with 5:48 to play in the third period. Valpo cut that lead to 53-43 at the end of the quarter, outscoring the Bulldogs 16-6 over that stretch as four different Beacons hit from 3-point range.
- Maci Rhoades hit a triple with 6:24 to play to make it a six-point game, and two minutes later, Katie Beyer hit from deep to bring Valpo within 61-56.
- The Bulldogs hit a 3-pointer on their next offensive possession to push their lead back to eight under the four-minute mark, but Valpo would outscore Drake 10-1 the rest of the way, as the Bulldogs missed their final six field goal attempts.
- A fast-break layup by Layla Gold with 1:16 remaining cut the deficit to two, and Gold followed the next time down by converting a pair of free throws with 27 seconds to play to tie the game.
- With the shot clock off, Drake was looking to run the game clock down and did so nearly all the way before the Beacons were called for a foul in a scramble with 2.9 seconds remaining. The Bulldogs split their pair of free throws to take a one-point lead.
- Following a timeout, Valpo inbounded in the frontcourt and got the ball to Leah Earnest, who was fouled outside the 3-point arc with 1.7 seconds remaining. She calmly hit both to put the Beacons in front.
- After a timeout, Drake triggered the inbounds in the frontcourt. The Bulldogs were able to get one final look at the basket, but it was off the mark as the Beacons celebrated their biggest win of the season.
- The victory was just the third in program history in 21 all-time meetings against Drake and was the Beacons' first of the year when trailing at halftime (1-14).
- Valpo hit at a 42.3% clip from 3-point range in the win, going 11-of-26 from deep — including a 7-of-11 mark in the second half. It was the eighth time this season the Beacons have hit at least 10 triples and the eighth time they have connected on at least 40% of their 3-point attempts.
- Valpo also took advantage of its trips to the foul line, hitting 13-of-15 from the stripe — the 86.7% clip its second-best of the season.
- Earnest led four Valpo players in double figures with 16 points. She outright led the Beacons in all five major statistical categories, also posting seven rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocked shots.
- Nevaeh Jackson scored in double figures for the 22nd time this year, finishing with 15 points. Beyer scored in double figures for the ninth time this season as she knocked down a career-best four 3-pointers for 12 points, while Rhoades tied her season high with three triples on her way to 11 points while also grabbing six rebounds.

...looking ahead
- With a win on Thursday, Valpo would advance to take on co-regular season champion and top seed Murray State Friday afternoon at noon.

...at neutral sites
- Thursday's game is Valpo's third of the season at a neutral venue.
- The Beacons opened the season at the AIA complex in Xenia, Ohio, falling 77-58 to a Liberty squad which went 23-6 this year and claimed a share of the CUSA regular season title.
- Valpo took down North Dakota two days after Thanksgiving at Lehigh, 76-57.
- This week is the first time that Valpo will play at the Ford Center.

@BradleyWBB
- Bradley closed the regular season with a 13-18 overall record and went 7-13 in Valley play to enter the tournament with the ninth seed.
- The Braves dropped their regular season finale at Missouri State, but had won four of their previous six games before that contest.
- Soleil Barnes leads Bradley, averaging 15.7 points/game for an offense which averages just 58.7 points/game.
- On the flip side, the Braves boast the conference's best scoring defense at 59.6 points/game.

A Look Back at the Bradley Games
...59-52 win at Valpo, Jan. 19
- Valpo used a 13-2 run in the first quarter to earn an early double-figure lead.
- The Beacons led 17-9 at the end of the opening period and were up 25-17 at halftime.
- Bradley got within five points multiple times in the second half, but each time, the Beacons kept the Braves from getting any closer.
- Valpo limited Bradley to 30.5% shooting from the field — the lowest mark by a Valpo D-I opponent this season. The Beacons also sent the Braves to the foul line just 11 times and forced 19 turnovers.
- On the offensive end, Valpo was limited to just 59 points on 36.0% shooting from the floor and 4-of-15 from 3-point range. It was just the program's fifth win in the seven-year tenure of head coach Mary Evans when scoring less than 60 points.
- The four made triples are tied for second-fewest in a victory in Evans' tenure as well.
- Valpo did strong work from the free throw line, finishing 19-of-22 at the stripe, including 9-of-10 in the fourth quarter.
- Leah Earnest scored nearly half of the Beacons' points, finishing with 27 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the field and 6-of-6 from the foul line.

...66-64 win at Bradley, Feb. 27
- The Beacons jumped out to a 21-12 lead after the opening 10 minutes, hitting 9-of-13 from the field in the first quarter.
- Valpo led by as many as 16 points late in the second quarter and went into halftime with a 35-22 lead after holding the Braves to just 2-of-13 shooting from the field for the period.
- An 8-0 run midway through the third quarter gave the Beacons their largest lead of the game at 53-32.
- The Braves scored the final five points of the third quarter, and then opened the fourth quarter on a 14-5 run to close to within 58-51.
- Bradley later hit 3-pointers on three straight possessions to tie the game at 61-61 with 1:38 to play, and then hit another triple to take a 64-62 lead with 42 seconds left.
- Nevaeh Jackson was fouled on the floor while Valpo was in the bonus on the offensive end and split her free throws to halve the deficit, but with the shot clock off, the Beacons were forced to foul on the other end and did so with 21 seconds to play. Bradley missed both its free throws and Earnest secured the rebound off the second miss, setting up her game-winning 3-pointer with 6.4 seconds remaining. 
- The game-winning basket by Earnest was the second of her collegiate career within the game's final 10 seconds. Last season, she beat the buzzer with a game-winning layup at UIC.
- While Earnest had the final shot, the performance of Jackson set the Beacons up for the win. The sophomore was one point off her career high, finishing with a game-high 25 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range.
- Valpo limited the Braves to 30% shooting from the field through the game's first three quarters before Bradley hit 8-of-10 from the field — including five 3-pointers — over the final 10 minutes.

Valpo in the Postseason
- After winning its first game in its first three appearances at the MVC Tournament, Valpo has dropped its first game in each of the last three seasons.
- The Beacons last played on Friday in 2022, when they earned a spot directly in the quarterfinals as the six seed.
- Valpo has only played as the better seed in two of its nine MVC Tournament games, winning both such games.
- Thursday's game will be just the second time since the 2006-07 season that Valpo has faced a team in a conference tournament that it beat twice in the regular season - Valpo took down Loyola twice in the regular season in 2017-18 and then defeated the Ramblers by 17 points in its first time at the MVC Tournament.
- This will be the first time since 2013 that Valpo has played a conference tournament game in its home state - the program hosted three Horizon League Tournament opening-round games at the ARC in its tenure in the league. Valpo last played a neutral-site conference tournament in 2002, when the Mid-Con Tournament was in Fort Wayne.
- This year is the first time Valpo has played in the tournament's opening session since the expansion to 12 teams. The Beacons' opening-round game last season was a 6 p.m. tip - the first time since 2019 Valpo's first tournament game wasn't the final game of the day.

A One-Sided Series
- Over the last four seasons, the series between these two programs has been all Valpo.
- Valpo has reeled off eight consecutive wins over the Braves, with Bradley's last win coming at Valpo Feb. 5, 2021.
- Six of the eight wins have come by single digits, including the Beacons' wins by seven and two points this season.
- The eight-game winning streak is Valpo's longest active streak against a single opponent. It is also the program's longest winning streak against a conference foe since defeating Centenary in all eight meetings as Mid-Continent Conference opponents in the mid-2000's.

Caution, Falling Records
- When Leah Earnest grabbed a rebound off a missed UNI free throw early in the second quarter last time out, it was the 871st board of her collegiate career, surpassing Tamra Braun for the most rebounds in program history.
- Earnest ended the game with 875 career rebounds.
- Earlier this month, when Earnest stepped on the court at Illinois State, she became the program's all-time leader in games played, moving past Caitlin Morrison's record of 141 games.
- Earnest enters the MVC Tournament having played in 144 career games.
- While it would take a tournament run of epic proportions for Earnest to threaten Debbie Bolen's single-season scoring record of 638 points, she does enter the tournament with 540 points this season - fourth-most in a single season in program history and just 19 away from the second spot.

What a Comeback
- The rally to beat Drake last Thursday from 20 points down marks the largest come-from-behind victory in program history. Valpo previously overcame a 19-point deficit to beat Ball State Dec. 29, 2012.
- It also ties the largest known come-from-behind victory by an MVC program. The most recent such game came earlier this season, as UNI overcame a 38-18 deficit to earn a 75-64 win over UIC.
- Per ESPN Analytics, Valpo had just a 0.5% chance of winning when Drake took its 47-27 lead with 5:48 to play in the third quarter. The Beacons' chance of winning was still just 1.1% with 2:06 to play.

A Highly Ranked Win
- Thursday's win came over a Drake team which not only entered the day tied atop the MVC standings, but which came in at #69 nationally in NET.
- It was Valpo's first top-100 win since the 2021-22 campaign.
- Drake is the highest-ranked opponent Valpo has knocked off since taking down a UNI squad which concluded the 2021-22 season ranked 54th in the NET.

Beating the Buzzer
- Leah Earnest knocked down her second game-winning shot inside the final 10 seconds in as many seasons with her triple at Bradley with 6.4 seconds to play.
- Earnest previously connected on a game-winning layup at the buzzer last season in a one-point win at UIC.
- Prior to Earnest's shot last season, Valpo's last game-winning shot in the final seconds came back in 2016, a Meredith Hamlet layup at the buzzer at Chicago State.
- While it wasn't a shot from the floor, Earnest also cinched the victory against Drake with a pair of free throws with 1.7 seconds to play.

Finally, Some Drama
- While most of Valpo's season has lacked for late-game drama, the Beacons seem to be making up for it down the stretch of the season.
- The closest game in Valpo's first 26 games this season was its seven-point home win over Bradley - the Beacons did go to double overtime with Detroit Mercy in a game which ended up an eight-point win to the Titans.
- Over the last five games, all three of Valpo's wins have gone down to the wire - a five-point win over Indiana State which required the Beacons to hit free throws down the stretch to hold off the Sycamores, the two-point win at Bradley which featured Earnest's game-winning triple in the final seconds and the one-point win over Drake last week thanks to the 10-1 game-ending run, capped by Earnest's free throws in the final seconds.

Nevaeh Knocks Them Down
- Sophomore Nevaeh Jackson has flown up Valpo's single-season 3-pointers made chart with a hot stretch from downtown to close the season.
- Jackson hit 14-of-28 from 3-point range over the final four games of the regular season.
- Jackson has connected on 73 3-pointers this year, fifth-most in a single season in program history and just three triples shy of fourth.
- Notably, despite the 3-point shooting prowess of Coach Evans' teams in her seven years at the helm, the last player to crack that top-10 chart was Meredith Hamlet in 2015-16.

22x1,500
- Leah Earnest became just the third player in program history to hit 1,500 career points with a basket midway through the third quarter against UIC.
- The basket also moved Earnest past Sarrah Stricklett for third on the Beacons' career scoring chart.
- Earnest became the fifth active MVC player with 1,500 career points at the D-I level, joining Katelyn Young (MUR), Katie Dinnebier (DRA), Maya McDermott (UNI) and Jaida McCloud (UIC).
- Currently sitting on 1,639 career points, a jump to second on the program's career chart might be a tough ask for Earnest, as Dani Franklin currently occupies that position with 1,721 points.

20 Or More For 22
- Leah Earnest reached the 20-point mark for the 13th time this season with a season-high 31 points on 10-of-13 shooting last time out against UNI - one point off her career best.
- Notably, Earnest did not hit the 20-point mark in any of the first seven games this year, meaning she has 13 20-point efforts in the last 24 games.
- Outside of the regular season, highlights include a 29-point effort at Lehigh and a 27-point game on 10-of-16 shooting in the win over Bradley.
- Earnest scored 20+ in four consecutive games Dec. 21-Jan. 4, the first Valpo player to do so in at least 15 years - the last time a Valpo player had scored 20+ in even three straight games was Shay Frederick in the 2020-21 campaign.
- Earnest has the most 20-point games by a Valpo player in a single season since Michelle Russell had 14 in the 1993-94 season.

Others With 20/20 Vision
- Earnest is far from the only Beacon to hit the 20-point mark this season.
- In all, four Valpo players have combined for 21 games with 20 or more points - compare that to last year, when only two players broke the 20-point barrier in a combined nine games.
- Nevaeh Jackson hit the 20-point mark in back-to-back outings in the Beacons' final two road games, going for 25 in the win at Bradley and 21 last time out at Illinois State. Earlier this year, Jackson raced past her previous career high with 26 points at Saint Louis, and also had 20-point performances earlier in the season in the win over Goshen and against Purdue Fort Wayne.
- Layla Gold joined Earnest in crossing the 20-point mark versus UDM, finishing with 21 points on 6-of-10 shooting. Earlier this year, Gold more than doubled her previous career best of 11 points with a 23-point night - which included five 3-pointers - at Milwaukee.
- Against Trinity Christian, Kayla Preston smashed her previous best, going for 20 points on 7-10 FG and 6-8 FT.

An Eye on the Record Book
- As Leah Earnest's career winds down, she is making an impact all over the program's career records, and with the season she is having, she'll look for spots on the team's single-season charts as well.
Career
- Games played - 1st, 144
- Points - 3rd, 1,639 (Dani Franklin, 2nd, 1,721)
- Rebounds - 1st, 875
- Field goals made - 4th, 585 (Jeanette Gray, 3rd, 595)
- Free throws made - 3rd, 364 (Sarrah Stricklett, 2nd, 494)
- Points per game - 9th, 11.4
- Rebounds/game - 7th, 6.1
- Field goal percentage - 9th, .462
Single-Season
- Points - 4th, 540 (Debbie Bolen 1992-93, 3rd, 550; Dani Franklin 2016-17, 2nd, 559)
- Rebounds - 234 (Marlous Nieuwveen 2001-02, 10th, 244)
- Field goals made - t-5th, 182 (Dani Franklin 2016-17/Lyn Swanson 1985-86, t-3rd, 199)
- Free throws made - 4th, 140 (Sarrah Stricklett 1997-98, 3rd, 152)
- Points/game - 7th, 17.4

Team Single-Season Marks
- As a team this season, Valpo has cracked a pair of the program's single-season top-10 charts.
- The Beacons have connected on 238 3-pointers this year, fourth-most in a single season in program history and just three shy of third position.
- Mary Evans' seven seasons have accounted for seven of the nine highest single-season 3-point totals in program history.
- Valpo has racked up 303 steals this year, eighth-most in a single season in program history.
- This year's team has the program's highest single-season steals total since 2001-02.

Winning With Defense
- Strong defensive efforts have been a common thread in the Beacons' victories this season.
- Valpo limited both Bradley (home) and Evansville (road) to 17 first-half points apiece in those victories - the lowest mark by a Valpo D-I opponent at halftime since the Beacons went on the road and limited South Dakota to 17 first-half points on Dec. 10, 2021.
- The Braves scored in single digits in each of the first two quarters, while the Purple Aces hit just one field goal in a three-point second quarter - the lowest-scoring quarter by a Valpo opponent since it held Indiana State scoreless in the second period Feb. 8, 2020.
- Valpo allowed Bradley to shoot just 30.5% from the field in the home win - the lowest mark by a Valpo D-I opponent this year and the second lowest by a D-I opponent over the last three seasons.
- In the win over Drake, Valpo limited the Bulldogs to 65 points - their second-lowest output in MVC play.
- It's been quite simple if you look at it: when the Beacons have held their opponent under 60 points this year, they are 10-0; when Valpo's opponent scores at least 60 points, the Beacons are 3-17.

Forcing Miscues
- The Beacons rank as the MVC's best at forcing miscues, averaging 19.5 turnovers forced/game.
- Valpo also leads the MVC with 9.8 steals/game and has tallied double-figure steals in 16 games this year.
- Valpo has forced at least 20 turnovers in 11 games so far, highlighted by 29 forced turnovers against Detroit Mercy and 28 in the win at Evansville.
- The Beacons racked up a season-best 16 steals in their home wins over Evansville and Indiana State, while they tallied 15 steals apiece in wins over Goshen, Western Michigan and Evansville (road).
- In the win over North Dakota, Valpo turned the Fighting Hawks' 26 turnovers into 33 points and held a massive 33-9 edge in points off turnovers. It was the program's greatest number of points off turnovers and the highest edge in the category since a Feb. 22, 2020 win at Loyola, when Valpo forced 31 turnovers and owns a 38-4 advantage in points off turnovers.

No Sophomore Slump
- After ranking fourth on the team in scoring (7.2 points/game) as a rookie, sophomore Nevaeh Jackson has cemented herself as a consistent second scorer this season.
- Jackson has nearly doubled her scoring average, entering the tournament second on the team with 14.0 points/game.
- Jackson has scored in double figures in 23 of 31 games, highlighted by her 26-point effort at Saint Louis.

Closing Strong
- Junior Maci Rhoades has been playing her best basketball late in the season.
- After scoring in double figures just four times in the season's first 19 games, Rhoades has hit the 10-point mark in seven of the last 12 games - including five of the last six to close the regular season.
- Rhoades was just 15-of-57 to start the season from 3-point range, but is 22-of-58 from deep since, including 6-of-10 last weekend.

Hoosier State Crown
- After sweeping the road trip to Indiana State and Evansville earlier this season, Valpo claimed the unofficial Hoosier State crown among the Valley's three Indiana-based schools by earning two more wins at home.
- This is the third time since Valpo joined the MVC that it has posted the best record against its in-state foes, also doing so in 2019-20 (4-0) and 2021-22 (3-1).
- Indiana State has finished with the best record three times (2017-18, 4-0; 2018-19, 3-1; 2023-24, 4-0) and Evansville once (2022-23, 3-1), while all three teams went .500 against the other two in 2020-21.

Quite the Turnaround
- Valpo's nine-point win over UIC was notable given the result when the two squads played in January in Chicago.
- That game ended 60-45 in UIC's favor, meaning that the Beacons flipped the scoring margin 24 points from one matchup to the next.
- That marks the program's largest shift from the first meeting of the season to the second meeting since the 2021-22 team fell to Indiana State by 20 the first time out before winning by five the second time around.

Career Highs
- Five of Valpo's seven returnees have set career bests in the scoring column this season - the only returnees who haven't are Saniya Jackson, who is out for the season, and Earnest.
- Joining the trio who had their first career 20-point efforts are senior Katie Beyer and sophomore Raeven Raye-Redmond.
- Raye-Redmond smashed past her previous best of nine with a 15-point night on 6-of-9 shooting at Milwaukee.
- Beyer hit three 3-pointers on her way to a 14-point game in the season opener versus Liberty, and then against North Dakota, surpassed that again with a 16-point effort.

All-Tournament Honors
- Valpo had a pair of players recognized as All-Tournament Team honorees following the conclusion of the Christmas City Classic.
- Leah Earnest averaged 23.5 points, 10 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game over the Beacons' two contests.
- Katie Beyer earned her selection by virtue of a strong 16-point performance, surpassing her career high, in the win over North Dakota.

Missing Pieces
- Valpo is down two starters for the remainder of the season due to injury.
- Saniya Jackson did not see any game action this year, undergoing successful knee surgery in early November.
- Raeven Raye-Redmond suffered a lower leg injury late in regulation Dec. 21 against Detroit Mercy and will miss the rest of the year as well.