Morningside’s run in the NAIA National Tournament came to an end in the National Semifinals on Monday evening with a 65-52 loss to top-seeded Thomas More.

Thomas More built a 16-point lead with 3 minutes left in the first half but the Mustangs began to connect from downtown and cut the lead to 6 by halftime. The Mustangs continued their hot shooting in the second half and came all the way back to lead by 1 with just under 8 minutes left. The Saints answered back though with a six point run and held on down the stretch.

Taylor Clos led the Saints with 14 points and five assists. They advance to face Westmont (CA) in the National Championship game tonight at 7:00 p.m. Westmont advanced with a 74-65 win over Indiana Wesleyan in the other Semifinal.

Exira-EHK graduate Sophia Peppers scored 9 points for the Mustangs. The junior also had 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, and 1 steal. Sierra Mithcell led all scorers with 27 points for Morningside. The Mustangs finish the season at 29-3.

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Ashley Joens scored an Iowa State NCAA Tournament record 33 points, including the clinching free throw with 3.1 seconds left, to lift the Cyclones to a 79-75 women’s opening-round win over Michigan State. Iowa State made 8 of 12 free throws in the fourth quarter and 6 of 8 in the final 1:41 to hold off the 10th-seeded Spartans, who trailed by 10 with 1:40 to play in the third quarter. The seventh-seeded Cyclones will play second-seeded and fourth-ranked Texas A&M in the second round of the Mercado Region on Wednesday. Nia Clouden scored 16 points for the Spartans (15-9).

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Chris Duarte scored 23 points and Oregon showed no signs of rust in beating No. 2 seed Iowa 95-80 to reach the Sweet 16 after a long layoff. The seventh-seeded Ducks had advanced to the West Region’s second round without playing a game because first-round opponent Virginia Commonwealth had multiple positive COVID-19 tests. That left the Ducks with a nine-day break since losing in the Pac-12 Tournament semifinals. Oregon’s offense hummed like it was fresh off the line once the ball went up. It kicked off the NCAA Tournament’s first Monday of second-round games with a masterpiece. Two-time All-American Luka Garza capped his stellar college career by tying the Iowa NCAA Tournament record with 36 points.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Marcus Zegarowski scored 20 points to help Creighton beat Ohio 72-58 in the NCAA Tournament. That secured the program’s first trip to the round of 16 in 47 years. Damien Jefferson added 15 points for the Bluejays, the fifth seed in the West Region. They’ll next face No. 1 overall seed Gonzaga in the the Sweet 16. Creighton hadn’t reached a regional semifinal since 1974. Dwight Wilson III scored 12 points to lead Ohio. The 13th-seeded Bobcats shot 32% and made 7 of 30 3-pointers after their upset of 2019 champion Virginia in the first round.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Isaiah Mobley scored 17 points, younger brother Evan had 10 points and 13 rebounds, and No. 6 seed Southern California routed Kansas 85-51 to reach the Sweet 16. It was the worst loss in 49 trips to the NCAA Tournament for the No. 3 seed Jayhawks. USC ended the first half on an 11-0 run to take a 40-21 lead and never looked back. Marcus Garrett scored 15 points to lead Kansas, which was out-rebounded 43-27.

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Brice Calip had 18 points and Missouri State used a huge third-quarter run to beat UC Davis 70-51 in the first round of the women’s NCAA Tournament. Jasmine Franklin added 17 points and 17 rebounds, helping No. 5 seed Missouri State dominate inside. Missouri State will face No. 13 Wright State on Wednesday after it advanced with an upset win against Arkansas.