Scoring droughts sink Lady Lancers
WINONA LAKE, Ind. – Grace’s women’s basketball let a second-half lead slip away on Saturday in a 59-54 defeat to Huntington.
The Lady Lancers (10-9, 1-8 Crossroads League) shot just 33 percent from the floor as a team. A key offensive drought erased a comfortable lead for Grace, allowing the Foresters (6-4, 3-3 CL) to rally for the win.
Both offenses were anemic in the first half. Grace only scored 11 points in the first quarter after shooting 5 of 17 from the floor.
But the Foresters were a touch worse, scoring only 10 points as Grace led 11-10.
The teams scored even less in the second quarter. Grace’s defense was sharp to mute Huntington to just seven points in the frame. The Foresters shot 22 percent from the floor in the half and had nine turnovers.
But Grace was unable to build a lead despite that defensive effort. The Lady Lancers shot 26 percent from the floor, including 2 of 12 (17 percent) from beyond the arc.
Grace still led 20-17 at halftime. Kaylie Warble had eight points on 4 of 4 shooting, and Kamryn Hostetler added six points. No other player for Grace scored more than two.
Grace’s offense sparked to life to start the third quarter. Maddie Ryman swished a pull-up jumper.
Hostetler, Kyannah Stull and Ryman followed that up with back-to-back-to-back triples to give Grace a 31-19 lead.
Warble scored in the paint to give Grace a 14-point lead, its largest of the game.
But the wheels began to fall off with four minutes remaining in the third quarter. Huntington’s defense was airtight, allowing the Foresters to rally.
By the end of the third quarter, Huntington trailed by four. That momentum carried into the fourth quarter; Huntington rattled off 10 points over the first three minutes as the Foresters took the lead for good.
Grace was held to a single 3-pointer from Kaylee Patton over the first six minutes of the fourth quarter. The Foresters took advantage of Grace’s drought to seize a 50-42 advantage with 4:00 to play.
For a 10-minute stretch bridging the third and fourth quarters, Grace scored just five points.
Grace did its best to comeback, using triples by Patton and Ryman to pull within four with 2:26 on the clock.
But Grace suffered another drought, going over two minutes without making another field goal. The Foresters made enough free throws down the stretch to hold for the win.
Ryman scored a team-high 12 points, all scored after halftime. Hostetler finished with 11 points, 3 assists and 2 rebounds, and Warble shot 5 of 5 for 10 points to go along with nine boards.
Patton tallied 7 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block and 1 steal, Stull notched seven points and four rebounds, and Kiersten Poor added 5 points, 6 boards and 3 assists.
Grace had 19 turnovers in the game, 12 of which came in the second half.
The Lady Lancers play a home-and-away series with Mt. Vernon Nazarene next week. On Wednesday Grace will be at home at 6 p.m. On Saturday the teams will clash in Ohio.
Recent Comments