Beyer claims NAIA scoring mark while team sets 3pt records in win over HLGU

For the Eutectics, it was another American Midwest Conference win. For Grace Beyer, it was the celebration of a tremendous career. In a game that started with palpable nervous energy at the start, Beyer was able to give the large gathering at the UHSP Gymnasium just what they came to see with four and a half gone by in the second quarter when she buried a three-point shot from the left-wing that vaulted her into the record books as the NAIA's all-time career leading scorer with 3,858 career points. Beyer entered the game needing 14 points to surpass Miriam Walker-Samuels' (Claflin, SC) previous mark of 3,855 set back in 1990. Beyer walked into the history books as the Eutectics used a record-setting day from the perimeter for an 80-56 win over the Hannibal-LaGrange Trojans.

All eyes were on Beyer coming into the game, but Samantha Matthews quickly shifted the attention to herself making the Eutectics' first four shots in six tries all from the perimeter to build a 12-8 lead with 4:06 left in the quarter all before Beyer had attempted a single shot. Beyer scored her first points with a three that followed Matthews' early heroics to make it 15-8 with 2:44 left in the first. Beyer capped the quarter with another triple in the final seconds as UHSP led 20-14 after one.

Even though the energy in the building was buzzing with anticipation for what was in store for Beyer, the Eutectics' point guard said afterwards that the start of the game did not feel much different for her than any other game, "There's a little bit of pressure you know with 14 points away just to kind of break it quickly, but my teammates had my back and I had their backs so it wasn't that  much different than a normal game".

After hitting six threes in the first quarter, the Eutectics really got rolling in the second period. Matthews got back in the flow drilling a three just 11 seconds in. Then it was threes from Emily Coleman, Elizabeth Allanach and Beyer that would set the stage for the crowning moment for the UHSP star guard. The record sealing basket would give UHSP a 37-17 lead with 5:30 remaining. The game was stopped momentarily as Beyer was given a game ball and a framed picture in recognition of her career accomplishment to a thunderous ovation from the crowd. Following that, Beyer and Matthews each made a pair of triples in the remainder of the half as USHP led 49-21 at the break after outscoring the Trojans 29-7 in the quarter. The Eutectics made 15 threes in the first half alone which was just one away from matching their program record for most triples made in a single game and they had an entire second half to go. Matthews herself hit seven threes in the opening half and needed just one more to match the program record for threes in a single game by one player.

Things were a little sloppy for the Eutectics to begin the third quarter. Hannibal-LaGrange opened the period on an 8-2 run as UHSP missed their first five field goal attempts of the third. It was not until 4:50 into the quarter that Allanach made the Eutectics' first field goal on a layup to put the home club on top 53-29. That started what turned out to be an impressive quarter for Allanach as she scored 11 points making 4-of-6 field goal attempts, three coming from beyond the arc. The rest of the club combined to go 1-for-7 from the field with Beyer accounting for the only other conversion. The Purple and Gold still outscored HLGU by one in the third to lead 64-35 heading to the fourth.

With the game all but decided, Beyer having reached her career benchmark and the team three-point record for a game already set, the fourth quarter was more of a formality with the lone piece of drama left to see if Matthews could connect on two threes to set yet another record on this day. Matthews would make one of the Eutectics four made field goals in the quarter but it did not come from beyond the arc as she would miss both her three-point attempts to finish 7-of-19 for the game, one off the all-time mark of eight.

On a night to celebrate the seniors, they accounted for all the points in the game for UHSP as Grace Beyer led the way with 32, Samantha Matthews had 23, Elizabeth Allanach added 22 and Emily Coleman had the other three. Coleman piled up 14 rebounds in the contest, one away from putting her in the top-10 all-time for rebounds in a single game. Allanach added nine boards and four helpers while Matthews had five assists and five rebounds. Beyer added four rebounds, six assists and two steals. Ivy Lesley led the Trojans with 26 points and Ashlyn Vermeer added 18. While UHSP was busy setting a new program record for made threes in a game going 20-for-48 (41.7%), Hannibal-LaGrange was a paltry 2-for-12 (16.7%). The previous UHSP record for made threes in a game was 16 against Central Baptist set back in 2020. The 48 attempted threes are also a new team record besting the previous mark of 42 set back in 2019 against Stephens. Each team made ten foul shots with HLGU attempting 12 and UHSP taking 11 while the Eutectics held a slight edge on the glass 43-38.

As for the new career leading scorer in the NAIA, Grace Beyer now has 3,874 points. She said now holding the record, "It's incredible. I never would have imagined being able to break the all-time scoring record and it's just something that I know as a little kid that "little me" would have been so proud of myself to able to get this far and be able to prove that all my hard work has paid off".

Beyer will have at least one more game to add to her career point total and a chance to reach the 3,900 point-plateau. With the regular season now complete, USHP is the 4-seed for the AMC Women's Basketball Tournament Presented by Tandem HR. The Eutectics (15-13, 10-8) will get a third matchup this season against the 5-Missouri Baptist Spartans (11-16, 9-9). UHSP won the regular season matchup in Chesterfield, 72-60 back on Jan. 20. The Spartans won the more recent contest on Feb. 13 with a 77-74 win at the UHSP Gymnasium after outscoring the Eutectics 26-15 in the fourth quarter. The Quarterfinal matchup in the AMC Tournament presented by Tanden HR will take place on Friday in Columbia, MO at 7:30 PM. The Cougars will be the host school for the tournament after having won the regular season title. 1-Columbia plays 8-Central Baptist at 5:15 PM, 3-Williams Baptist will face 6-Cottey at 2:15 PM and 2-Stephens draws 7-William Woods in the opening game of the tournament on Friday at 12 PM.