No. 1 Arlington Baptist College defeted No. 3 Central Christian College of the Bible 109-73 in the 2015 NCCAA Women's Basketball National Championship Final.
JOPLIN, Mo. — A year removed from a runner-up finish in the NCCAA Women’s Basketball Division II National Championship, Arlington Baptist College would not settle for second two years in a row.
The Patriots, using a second half offensive explosion, sprinted away from Central Christian College of the Bible 109-73, to earn their first NCCAA Women’s Division II National Championship at the Ozark Christian College Multipurpose Building Saturday night.
Arlington Baptist (29-5) opened the second half with 26-4 run over the 5:18 and opened a 30-point margin, 73-43.
The lead swelled to 39, 93-54 with 9:48 left in the game, as the Patriots continued to push the ball and a run-and-gun tempo.
Four players scored 20 points for Arlington — sophomore guard Tori Wise had 26 with three 3-pointers, 6-foot-5 senior center Rosalyn Thorpe had 25 points and 14 rebounds, NCCAA Division II player of the year Jade Johnson had 23 and national tournament MVP Morgan Hale finished with 21.
Arlington shot 50 percent for the game (41 of 82 from the floor), forced 19 turnovers and had 26 assists on its 41 field goals.
Johnson, a 5-foot-8 junior guard from Houston, earned all-tournament honors along with Thorpe.
Hale, a 5-foot-6 junior guard from Aransas Pass, Texas who earned all-tournament honors for the second year in Joplin, averaged 22.7 points, 4 assists, 3 steals per game during the tournament.
Central Christian College of the Bible from Moberly, Mo., making its first appearance ever in the NCCAA National Championship, led by four early in the game and decided to match Arlington’s run-and-gun style for the first half shooting 42 percent (16 of 38) before halftime.
Senior guard Kelsi Mueller, a two-time first-team NCCAA All-American from Eldon, Mo., led the Saints with 19 points and 18 rebounds.
Junior guard Tianna Terry had 19 points, sophomore guard Katelynn Frazier and sophomore forward Taylor Salmons added 12 each.
2015 NCCAA Women’s Division II All-Tournament Team
Aubrey Folger, Lancaster Bible College
Rosalyn Thorpe, Arlington Baptist College
Jade Johnson, Arlington Baptist College
Jena Glick, Kentucky Christian University
Katelynn Frazier, Central Christian College of the Bible
Tournament MVP
Morgan Hale, Arlington Baptist College
Saturday’s Results
Maranatha Baptist University 76, Ozark Christian College 68, 7th place
North Central University 70, Pensacola Christian College 66, 5th place
Lancaster Bible College 57, Kentucky Christian University 53, 3rd place
Arlington Baptist College 109, Central Christian College of the Bible 73, championship
Visit the host site http://occ.edu/NCCAA/ for complete championship information.
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2015 National Championship Participants
1. Arlington Baptist College (Southwest Region Champions)
2. Lancaster Bible College (East Region Champions)
3. Central Christian College of the Bible (Central Region Champions)
4. Kentucky Christian University (Mideast Region Champions)
5. Pensacola Christian College (South Region Champions)
6. North Central University (North Central Region Champions)
7. Ozark Christian College (Championship Host)
8. Maranatha Baptist University (Midwest Region Champions)
2015 Awards
NCCAA First Team All-American
Jade Johnson- Arlington Baptist College- JR
Shekinah Alexander- Ohio Christian University- SR
Jenna Bloodworth- Moody Bible Institute- SR
Alyssa Loudermilk- Pensacola Christian College- SO
Kelsi Mueller- Central Christian College of the Bible- SR
Aubrey Folger- Lancaster Bible College- JR
Shana McCosar- Hillsdale Free Will Baptist College- JR
Morgan Hale- Arlington Baptist College- JR
Jana Glick- Kentucky Christian Univeristy- SR
Jamie High- North Central University- JR
NCCAA Second Team All-American
Megan Scholtens- Grace Bible College- SO
Katelynn Frazier- Central Christian College of the Bible- SO
Hallie Linville- Clearwater Christian College- SO
Taylor Baham- Johnson University-TN- SO
Katy Stover- Lancaster Bible College- JR
Brooke Grant- Hillsdale Free Will Baptist College- JR
Olivia Davis- Ohio Christian Univeristy- JR
Janae Droste- Trinity Bible College- JR
Hanna Reyes- Hillsdale Free Will Baptist College- SO
Shanice Smith- Lancaster Bible College- SR
Honorable Mention
Stacie Ross- Maranatha Baptist Bible College – FR
Anna Iwaniw- Grace Bible College- JR
Taylor Salmons- Central Christian College of the Bible- JR
Lizzy Swanson- North Central University- FR
Laura Garwich- Faith Baptist Bible College- SO
Sarah Simpson- Baptist Bible College-MO- FR
Anasia Hughes- Trinity Baptist College- SO
2015 Player of the Year
Jade Johnson- Arlington Baptist Bible College- JR
2015 Coach of the Year
Leann Dahlstein- Central Christian College of the Bible