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March 11, 2006 INDIANA STATE ADVANCES TO FINALS OF STATE FARM MVC TOURNAMENT SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – With the 2006 Jackie Stiles MVC Player on the Year Melanie Boeglin on the bench early in the first half of a semifinal contest versus Evansville, the pressure to win was all on Indiana State’s freshman point guard Leah Phillips. She responded like a pro, pouring in a career-high 17 points as the Sycamores defeated the Purple Aces, 81-65, to advance to the State Farm MVC Tournament Championship for the third time in the last four seasons. ISU improved to 26-4 with the victory, while UE dropped to 17-13. Indiana State faces off against No. 7 seed Missouri State, who defeated Northern Iowa by a 62-59 count in the second semifinal contest. The game will be a rematch of the 2002 title tilt that pitted the Sycamores versus the Lady Bears in Des Moines, Iowa. ISU is 0-2 all-time in MVC Championship games. Melanie Boeglin tied Phillips for the game-high with 17 more points. Stephanie Lisch was also tough for Indiana State finishing with a double-double, hauling in 12 boards, 10 on the defensive end, and adding 10 points. Lisa Verhoff was the fourth Sycamore to record double figures in points, notching 11 and also tallying three steals. Rebekah Parker led the Aces with 14 points and also grabbed seven rebounds. Parker dished out four assists. Megan Liffick finished with 13 points, while Kanika Rogers had seven points and eight rebounds in the loss. Sunday’s championship game will begin at 4 p.m. (EST) and be televised on FSN Midwest.
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