Box Score Columbia, Mo. - With a berth in their fifth straight league championship on the line, the Lady Cougar basketball team turned in a spirited performance in an 83-66 victory over 18^th-ranked Lyon College in the American Midwest Conference (AMC) Tournament Semifinals on Friday night at the Arena of Southwell Complex. Columbia, ranked 11^th in the latest NAIA Women's Basketball Top 25 Poll, improves to 26-6 on the year and also clinches a bid to the NAIA National Tournament with the win.

The Lady Cougars got off to a strong start in the first half behind seven early points from Aqua Corpening for a 16-6 lead at the 14:14 mark. The Scots fought battled their way back to trim the Columbia lead to 20-17 with 8:50 to play in the frame, but a 15-0 run by the Lady Cougars over the next four minutes provided them with a double-digit advantage for the remainder of the period. Columbia took a 41-29 lead into the locker room after shooting 50 percent from the field and holding Lyon to 33 percent. The Lady Cougars were led by Janairrika Bland with 12 points and Corpening with 11 in the opening half.

The Scots hung around to start the second period and eventually pulled within seven at 52-45 on a three-pointer by Elliot Taylor with 13:55 remaining. The two squads traded baskets over the next six minutes before Columbia began to pull away as Tierney Seifert connected on a three-pointer for a 75-59 advantage with 5:26 to play. The Lady Cougars would hold a double-digit lead over the remainder of regulation to complete their third win over Lyon this season.

Columbia hit 29 of 56 attempts (52 percent) from the floor on the night despite hitting just 3 of 14 from three-point range. Bland led three Lady Cougars in double figures with a game-high 24 points. Ashley Fisher had 18 points and a team-high eight rebounds to go along with 11 points and a game-high six assists from Corpening.

Columbia will head to 2^nd-ranked Freed-Hardeman University (31-1) on Monday, March 10^th for the AMC Tournament Championship Game. The Lady Lions defeated William Woods University 70-53 in Friday's other tournament semifinal matchup. The Lady Cougars dropped both meetings with Freed-Hardeman during the regular season, including an 84-82 thriller in Columbia back on February 22^nd. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. in Henderson, Tenn.