Springfield, Mo.— Spire women's basketball saw their season end in Springfield today, falling 55-80 Saturday afternoon at AGFinancial Arena to the top-seeded Evangel Valor.

The Spires started off hot with 8 quick points off buckets from senior Mary Olson, Saige Grampsas, Freshman of the Year Abby Wendte, and Keely Barnard. The back-and-forth scoring would be the theme of the first half as Cady Huffman would put her name on the board with less than five minutes left in the opening quarter to make it 12-10 in favor of USM. Summer Wieneke would make it even at 15-15 with two minutes remaining, but after another Valor bucket, Jaylee Levario would have to drive in for a layup in the final minute of the first quarter to knot it again at 18-18.

In the second quarter, the Spires' defense continued to compete, but an Evangel 3-pointer by Dillard with 4:42 left in the half helped extend the margin as the hosts took a 37-27 advantage into the locker room.

Evangel controlled the final 20 minutes behind a 19-14 edge in the third quarter and a 24-14 advantage in the fourth. The Spires briefly seized momentum late in the third when Grampsas buried a 3-pointer with 10 seconds left to trim the deficit to 53-41 entering the final 10 minutes, but Evangel would again respond with consistent scoring and timely shooting from deep to put the game out of reach.

The Spire's defense and rebounding kept their group within striking distance for much of the afternoon. USM blocked four shots and collected 34 rebounds, battling inside against an Evangel front line that finished with 46 boards. Forward Cady Huffman anchored the interior, posting 9 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, including five offensive boards, along with three blocks. Her presence around the rim helped limit Evangel's second-chance opportunities early and gave the Spires additional possessions on the offensive end.

On the perimeter, Grampsas provided a key spark, finishing with a team-high 11 points to go with seven rebounds. Her three made 3-pointers, including the late third-quarter triple that cut the deficit to 12, highlighted the Spires' attempts to claw back against an Evangel team that shot 61.5% (8 of 13) from beyond the arc. Despite generating open looks, Saint Mary shot 29.0% (20 of 69) from the field and 32.0% (8 of 25) from 3-point range, numbers that ultimately made it difficult to match Evangel's offensive efficiency on their own home court.

Evangel was led by Shockley, who scored a game-high 31 points on 13-of-24 shooting and added nine rebounds and three blocks. Hambelton nearly posted a triple-double with 13 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, while Lydia Babirye chipped in 11 points and eight boards, knocking down multiple 3-pointers, including one in the final minute that pushed the margin to its eventual 25-point final. As a team, Evangel shot 43.1% (31 of 72) from the floor and converted 10 of 13 free throws.

The Spires finished with 10 assists against 16 turnovers, while Evangel recorded 15 assists and 13 turnovers in the semifinal match up. Your Spire women's basketball team finished their 2025-26 season with an overall record of 20-10 and 17-7 in KCAC play, earning them the No. 4 seed in the post-season tournament this year.

The USM women's longest conference win streak came during December 10^th through January 17^th when they defeated Avila University and Kansas Wesleyan before the holiday break and then remained victorious over Sterling College, Oklahoma Wesleyan, Bethel College, York University, and Tabor College.