Sparkling 2021-22 slate concludes in quarterfinal thriller

SIOUX CITY, IOWA – An indelible program mark and memories that last a lifetime.

Following a close-knit 84-79 loss to No. 1-ranked Southeastern University in the quarterfinal round of the 2022 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Saturday, March 19, those were two takeaways Morningside University fans could look back upon at the Tyson Events Center.

Head coach Jamie Sale's squad, the Great Plains Athletic Conference champions and league postseason tournament runners-up, gave the nation's top-ranked team all it could handle for 40 minutes. Mside answered every run by the Fire, including a second-half swell that gave them a 16-point lead with five and a half minutes to go.

A 16-2 answer cut the deficit to 79-76 as the final two and a half minutes approached. Senior guard Sierra Mitchell (Pleasant Hill, Iowa) hit a pair of three-pointers. She was joined by sophomore guard Alexis Spier (Gretna, Neb.) and senior forward Taylor Rodenburgh (Hawarden, Iowa) with similar conversions to spark the comeback. However, Southeastern responded with five of the last eight points to claim the victory. 

Mitchell, putting the wraps on a collegiate career for the ages, became the all-time long-range shooting leader for all divisions in men's and women's action, connecting on seven of 15 attempts to move to 533. The program, GPAC, and NAIA's all-time leading scorer (2,691 points) tallied 27 to top three in double figures. Senior forward Sophia Peppers (Exira, Iowa) contributed a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds while dishing out six assists. Rodenburgh, concluding her collegiate career along with Mitchell, guard Madison Clayton (Sioux City, Iowa), and student coach Tenly Hansen (York, Neb.), wound up an impressive post-season span, posting 11 points and eight rebounds, where she averaged 17.5 points and better than five rebounds in the span.

Morningside finished the year 30-6. The Mustangs reached 30-or-more victories for the eighth time in program history, which was the same amount of times they marched to the quarterfinals while reaching the national tournament for the 20^th successive season.