Wednesday, November 12
Harrisonburg, Va.
6:00 PM ET
Liberty University
2-1,0-0CUSA
61
at
74
James Madison
3-1,0-0Sun Belt
1
2
3
4
F
Liberty
20
17
13
11
61
James Madison
20
7
20
27
74
JaKayla Thompson made her first start as a Lady Flame on Wednesday.
Big 4th Quarter Propels JMU Past Liberty, 74-61
11/12/2025 9:07:00 PM | Women's Basketball
HARRISONBURG, Va. – Liberty led host James Madison for most of Wednesday evening's clash at Atlantic Union Bank Center. However, the Dukes' Ashanti Barnes scored 12 of her career-high 29 points during her team's big fourth quarter, leading to JMU's come-from-behind 74-61 triumph.
Liberty is now 2-1 to start the 2025-26 season after its first road game of the year resulted in its first setback under head coach Alexis Sherard. The Lady Flames led by 12 early in the third quarter but could not hold off the Dukes. As a result, Liberty falls to 1-10 all-time when playing in Harrisonburg.
Preseason Sun Belt favorite JMU improves to 3-1 during its season-opening five-game homestand. The Dukes outscored the Lady Flames 47-24 during the final 20 minutes, including 27-11 in the decisive fourth quarter.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Emmy Stout – 16 points, 8 rebounds; Avery Mills – 16 points, 4 rebounds; Ify Nwaobi – 8 points, 13 rebounds; Lydie Mwamba – 9 points; Elisabeth Aegisdottir – 6 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists.
James Madison Individuals: Barnes – 29 points, 11 rebounds; Peyton McDaniel – 16 points; Bree Robinson – 11 points, 4 steals; Zakiya Stephenson – 8 points, 8 assists, 5 steals; Kylie Marshall – 8 points.
Key Team Stats: JMU finished at 42.9 percent (30-of-70) from the field, including 54.1 percent (20-of-37) after halftime and 64.7 percent (11-of-17) during the final stanza. Liberty ended up at 37.7 percent (23-of-61). Both teams struggled from beyond the arc, with Liberty shooting 31.3 percent (5-of-16) to the Dukes' 28 percent (7-of-25). Liberty got to the foul line more than twice as often as the home team but connected at just a 66.7 percent (10-of-15) rate while JMU was 7-of-7. The Lady Flames controlled the rebounding battle (48-32), but JMU had the upper hand in second-chance points (15-9) and points in the paint (36-26). Liberty committed 21 turnovers on the night to JMU's nine.
Turning Point
Ify Nwaobi's second layup of the fourth quarter fell through the net with 7:30 remaining, giving Liberty what proved to be its final lead at 54-53.
JMU countered with a quick 8-0 run over the next 1:23 to take the lead for good. Zakiya Stephenson's four-point play with 6:07 punctuated the burst and gave the Dukes their largest advantage up to that point, 61-54.
Liberty got no closer than six the rest of the way, as Ashanti Barnes helped to close things out with the last three of her 13 made field goals for the contest.
Notes and Nuggets
No. 11 Duke will visit Liberty for the second season in a row, Sunday at 2 p.m. inside Liberty Arena. Retired Head Coach Carey Green will be recognized during the contest, which is set to air on ESPN+.
Liberty is now 2-1 to start the 2025-26 season after its first road game of the year resulted in its first setback under head coach Alexis Sherard. The Lady Flames led by 12 early in the third quarter but could not hold off the Dukes. As a result, Liberty falls to 1-10 all-time when playing in Harrisonburg.
Preseason Sun Belt favorite JMU improves to 3-1 during its season-opening five-game homestand. The Dukes outscored the Lady Flames 47-24 during the final 20 minutes, including 27-11 in the decisive fourth quarter.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Emmy Stout – 16 points, 8 rebounds; Avery Mills – 16 points, 4 rebounds; Ify Nwaobi – 8 points, 13 rebounds; Lydie Mwamba – 9 points; Elisabeth Aegisdottir – 6 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists.
James Madison Individuals: Barnes – 29 points, 11 rebounds; Peyton McDaniel – 16 points; Bree Robinson – 11 points, 4 steals; Zakiya Stephenson – 8 points, 8 assists, 5 steals; Kylie Marshall – 8 points.
Key Team Stats: JMU finished at 42.9 percent (30-of-70) from the field, including 54.1 percent (20-of-37) after halftime and 64.7 percent (11-of-17) during the final stanza. Liberty ended up at 37.7 percent (23-of-61). Both teams struggled from beyond the arc, with Liberty shooting 31.3 percent (5-of-16) to the Dukes' 28 percent (7-of-25). Liberty got to the foul line more than twice as often as the home team but connected at just a 66.7 percent (10-of-15) rate while JMU was 7-of-7. The Lady Flames controlled the rebounding battle (48-32), but JMU had the upper hand in second-chance points (15-9) and points in the paint (36-26). Liberty committed 21 turnovers on the night to JMU's nine.
Turning Point
Ify Nwaobi's second layup of the fourth quarter fell through the net with 7:30 remaining, giving Liberty what proved to be its final lead at 54-53.
JMU countered with a quick 8-0 run over the next 1:23 to take the lead for good. Zakiya Stephenson's four-point play with 6:07 punctuated the burst and gave the Dukes their largest advantage up to that point, 61-54.
Liberty got no closer than six the rest of the way, as Ashanti Barnes helped to close things out with the last three of her 13 made field goals for the contest.
Notes and Nuggets
- Stout, who has scored in double figures in all three games to begin her sophomore season, matched her season high of 16.
- Classmate Mills also recorded her third consecutive double-digit scoring output (16 points), connecting on multiple triples (two) for the third game in a row.
- Nwaobi's point (8) and rebound (game-high 13) totals were both the highest of the redshirt freshman's young collegiate career.
- JaKayla Thompson started at point guard for the first time as a Lady Flame and the fourth time in her collegiate career, tallying two points and a career-best seven boards in 32 minutes.
- Mwamba's nine points off the bench equaled her career high.
- The home team has won five straight meetings in the Liberty-JMU head-to-head series, which the Dukes lead 15-4 overall. Separated by 100 miles, the Commonwealth foes squared off for the 17th time in the last 20 seasons.
- Liberty has now outrebounded each of its first three opponents by 10 or more boards to open the 2025-26 campaign.
- The Lady Flames' 13-0 scoring run in the second quarter continued an early season trend. Liberty previously reeled off a 21-0 run during the season opener against Frostburg State and a 17-0 run versus East Carolina on Friday.
No. 11 Duke will visit Liberty for the second season in a row, Sunday at 2 p.m. inside Liberty Arena. Retired Head Coach Carey Green will be recognized during the contest, which is set to air on ESPN+.
Team Stats
Lib
JMU
FG%
.377
.429
3FG%
.313
.280
FT%
.667
1.000
RB
48
32
TO
21
9
STL
4
12
Game Leaders
Pts
16
FGM
6
3FGM
2
FTM
2
Pts
16
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Basketball
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