ST. LOUIS – In the 2019 offseason for Missouri Baptist women's basketball, head coach Samuel Pearson put the work in of building a new foundation for the program. That footing took hold in Pearson's first recruiting class as the man in charge, and on Saturday afternoon, three cornerstone MBU players from that 2019 freshman class were recognized before a fitting Senior Day sendoff against Cottey College.
 
MoBap (22-4, 18-2 in AMC) finalized a historic regular season with an 80-50 win against Cottey (11-17, 6-14 in AMC) at the Carl & Deloris Petty SRC. The senior trio of Lauren Ebert, Alexis Allstun, and Tionne Taylor led a charged effort in dispatching the Comets by way of all hitting double-digit scoring marks. Ebert had 13, and Allstun and Taylor both scored 11. Fellow starter Kasey Rice was the high scorer for the home side with 14, while Kelsie Williams chipped in 10 off the bench.
 
The Spartans had a bit of a slow start in the opening quarter but turned things around in the second behind Williams' energy off the pine. The graduate transfer from Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville made some key defensive plays and dished out a pair of assists that gave a lift to MBU's offense. The MoBap attack then hit a flurry of three-pointers in the second half. Back-to-back-to-back triples coming from Taylor and Ebert, then Taylor again helped to build a 20-point advantage. A brief Cottey 10-point run that chopped the lead in half was answered with a 14-1 run by MBU to put it out of reach.
 
Ebert had a wonderful defensive first 20 minutes and stole the ball six times. The St. Charles product ended the game with seven, just one short of the single-game MBU program record. Graduate senior Joelle Atkins had a fantastic game on the glass, leading the Spartans with eight rebounds. Every MoBap player saw action, and all but three scored in the authoritative performance.
 
MBU spread the ball effectively all game and had 21 assists overall, good for the third-highest mark this season. The Spartans outrebounded Cottey 30-25, had 48 points in the paint to the Comets 16, and
 
The Spartans broke the record for conference wins in a campaign for the fourth time this season and the second time in as many years at regular season's end with the 18 American Midwest Conference victories. The 22-4 mark is the best record for the program since the 2005-06 season, but MBU will have work to do if they want to keep the party going. By way of the season series sweep Columbia College achieved against MoBap, the Spartans have earned the 2-seed and will likely need to win the conference tournament to make good on aspirations of playing beyond the AMC Women's Basketball Championship tournament.
 
Other statlines worth mentioning for MBU came by way of Bryce Dowell (9 points), Joelle Atkins (2 points, 8 rebounds), and Deyana Dodd (4 assists, 3 rebounds).
 
"We've won 22 games, but I think that we've ascended thoughout the year… so it feels good to be playing our best brand of basketball come conference tournament when it really counts," Pearson said. "We've got one heck of a team here, but [today] is for the seniors.
 
"It's for Tionne Taylor. It's for Lauren Ebert. It's for Alexis Allstun. They've been through the thick and thin… blood sweat and tears. First season we won eight games… and now we're at 22 and counting. They're a very special group [and] they've allowed me to grow as a coach… I wish these girls nothing but success after the season, but our work's just getting started."
 
Missouri Baptist now moves onto the postseason. The Spartans' quarterfinal AMC tournament matchup is set, and MBU will travel to Columbia, Mo., to face the 7-seed William Woods Owls on Friday, February 24th at 12:00 pm.