SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. – The 2024-25 campaign tipped off for Head Coach Shawn Reed and the Lady Bluejays on Thursday evening as Coach Reed's squad took on a tough John Brown University team. 
 
The Lady Bluejays opened the game by taking a seven-point lead at the end of the first quarter, going on a ten-point run in the last five minutes to close out the quarter.
 
The second quarter saw the Eagles surge back into the game, trading buckets with the Bluejays before taking a two-point lead into the halftime break.
 
A three-pointer from Kassidy Beam at the 5:19 mark in the third quarter gave Tabor a six-point lead, aided by ten points from Alyvia Owens. The lead marked the Bluejays' largest lead since the end of the first quarter. Despite Tabor's enhanced offensive effort, JBU took a five-point lead into the fourth quarter.
 
John Brown built up the largest lead of the game with 6:04 remaining, leading by 11. Beginning with a bucket from Lille Veer, TC started chipping away at their deficit, mounting an excellent response and taking the lead at the 1:30 mark courtesy of a three from freshman Hailey Contreras. Leading by as many as eight with 11 seconds to go, Tabor secured the victory in a hostile environment, winning by six.
 
Alyvia Owens' 27 points highlighted the box score for Tabor, which included 20 points in the second half. Almost more impressive than Owens' point total was her field goal percentage, as she shot an astounding 11-12 and 91.6% from the field. Kloe Bowin and Hailey Contreras followed, each finishing with 13 points, while Kassidy Beam finished just outside of double figures with eight. Brooke Berlin and Miyah McGee led the team on the glass, each grabbing five boards. McGee led the team defensively, grabbing four steals and four defensive rebounds. 
 
"Obviously we are thrilled to earn an opening game victory on the road, but we have a lot of things to work on", remarked Head Coach Shawn Reed. "Like all first games there were positives and negatives, but I was most impressed with our ability to continue competing even when things looked pretty bleak late in the game."
 
"We didn't shoot the ball well from behind the three-point line until late, but I think that was a product of forcing it. We have great shooters on this team but sometimes more patience is needed."
 
The key difference for the Bluejays was their 27 points scored off turnovers, coupled with 32 points off the bench, compared to JBU's nine and five respectively. While the Eagles shot better from beyond the arc (31.6%), the Bluejays dominated from the field, shooting 51.7% compared to John Brown's 43.1%.
 
"Our interior post players had a tremendous game inside. Alyvia and Kloe were basically unstoppable, and it was good to see both of them establish themselves in the first game. I thought Miyah played a solid game for us at point guard. Although some of her shots didn't fall, she took care of the ball, ran the offense and played well defensively!"
 
"Kass, Lillie and Brooke were all very solid for us and Hailey Contreras had a fantastic game off the bench and she hit some HUGE shots for us late! We really like our freshmen class, and it was fun to see Hailey shine in her first collegiate game!"
 
 
With the win, the Lady Bluejays open the season 1-0, shifting their focus to Tuesday evening's home-opener against the preseason No. 17 ranked Grand View University Vikings. Tuesday's contest is set for a 5:30pm tipoff and will be broadcast live on Tabor Webcast and the KCAC Network. Live stats will also be available.
 
Be sure to stay up to date with all information regarding Bluejay Athletics by following us on X at @gotaborbluejays, on Instagram and Facebook @taborbluejays, and on our official athletic website, taborbluejays.com.
 
Tabor College is a Christ-centered institution located in Hillsboro, Kansas. The Bluejays are members of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and compete in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC).