Lady Lancers muscle past Maple Leafs

GOSHEN, Ind. – Grace’s women’s basketball team picked up a 52-44 win over Goshen on Wednesday night.

The Lady Lancers (11-7, 2-5 CL) led from the opening tip and used a dominant performance from Karlee Feldman to pick up their second Crossroads League win of the season.

The first quarter started out as a defensive slugfest with neither team scoring a field goal for the first 4:27 of play.

Kenzie McMahon sparked the Lady Lancers, scoring four of Grace’s first six points to build an early advantage.

The offense for the Maple Leafs (9-10, 3-4 CL) was stymied by the Lady Lancers which forced Goshen into five turnovers and allowed them to convert on just two of their 11 field goal attempts.

Peyton Murphy and Maddie Ryman each hit a 3-point shot, and Murphy closed the quarter with a buzzer-beating layup as Grace took a 16-4 lead into the quarter break.

Grace pushed its lead to as many as 13 in the second quarter as Feldman began to dominate in the paint. Feldman scored four points and grabbed three rebounds in the opening minutes as Grace built a 24-11 lead.

Grace began to cool from the field which allowed Goshen to slowly chip away at Grace’s lead.

The Lady Lancers again converted from the field as time expired as Feldman grabbed an offensive rebound and immediately scored on the putback. Grace went into halftime leading 28-21.

Feldman had amassed a double-double in the first half with 14 points and 14 rebounds in the first 20 minutes of action.

The Lady Lancers only shot 30 percent from the field compared to 37% from the Maple Leafs. Grace’s 27-14 advantage on the boards aided their lead.

As the second half got under way, McMahon and Kiersten Poor each made baskets early, but Grace went over five minutes without scoring a field goal again which allowed Goshen to claw back.

Kaylee Patton ended the cold stretch for Grace, but Goshen answered with a late triple to pull within one as the game entered the final quarter.

Maddie Ryman and Feldman each converted early baskets to reestablish a five-point lead for Grace, but Goshen refused to go away. Goshen was within four at the midpoint of the quarter.

After Goshen missed on a plethora of chances to make it a one-possession game, Ryman went on a solo scoring run. The junior guard scored the last eight points for Grace, and the Lady Lancers’ defense shut down Goshen to claim the 52-44 victory.

Grace outrebounded Goshen 45-35 and outscored them 26-22 in the paint. Grace shot 35 percent from the field in the game, and made 2 of 13 on 3-point field goal attempts.

Feldman was a force in the paint with 17 points, 20 rebounds and a block. Ryman scored 14 points, and Murphy scored seven off the bench.

McMahon added eight points and nine rebounds, while Poor grabbed six rebounds and added two steals.

The Lady Lancers will be in action again on Saturday as they travel to Huntington for a 1 p.m. showdown.