FULTON, Mo. - Westminster women's basketball earned a dominant 93-77 victory over Blackburn to clinch the fourth and final spot in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament.
The Blue Jays end the regular season with a 14-11 overall record and an 9-7 record in the SLIAC.
"We are so blessed to earn the last spot in the SLIAC Tournament," said Westminster Head Coach James Arnold. "The ladies worked really hard and deserve it. It extends out season for at least one more game."
The Beavers were able to hang close to Westminster in the first quarter, but 10 points from Mirrakohl Johnson kept the Blue Jays ahead for the opening 10 minutes.
"We were a little out of sync on the defensive end," said Arnold. "Some of that can be attributed to the late start and senior day ceremony, but credit to Blackburn who made some tough shots."
The second quarter allowed Westminster to open their lead against Blackburn with the largest scoring margin of all four quarters at 30-22. Kendahl Adams scored 10 of her 33 points in the second quarter in just six minutes of play.
While Blackburn managed to keep the next two quarters close, it wasn't enough to overcome the double-digit deficit that the Blue Jays had built up.
"We had another really special day offensively," said Arnold. "This group can really score and we executed really well on that end of the floor today."
Adams led all scorers with 33 points and 11 rebounds. After breaking the single season scoring record this season, she adds to her list of accomplishments by breaking the single season rebounding record, pulling down 208 boards so far this season.
Mirrkohl Johnson added another dominant performance for the Blue Jays, scoring 25 points and pulling down 13 boards.
Grace Archambault also broke the season rebounding record with 201 total rebounds after grabbing 12 in today's game.
Adding to their day, the Blue Jays also honored seniors Payton Beeler and Kelsey Ray.
"Kelsey and Payton have been a big part of the tremendous tradition of success in this program and it has been an honor and a privilege to work with them," said Arnold.
Westminster advances to the SLIAC Tournament to face No. 1 seed and host Greenville Friday at 8 p.m.
"We'll have our hands full with Greenville but I am excited for the tremendous opportunity," said Arnold.
