GLENDALE, Ariz. - Grace College’s women’s basketball team fell short in a showdown with No. 19 Arizona Christian.
The Lancers (7-4, 1-3 Crossroads League) couldn’t keep pace with the Firestorm who shot at a blistering rate on their way to a 98-86 victory.
Arizona Christian (10-1) caught fire from the field from the tip to set the tone for what would be an impressive shooting performance. The Lancers offense did their part to match Firestorm’s shooting and trailed 15-12 by the midpoint of the quarter.
Peyton Murphy was the offensive catalyst for Grace early as she had eight of the Lancers’ first 12 points.
Grace’s offense went cold from the field for the remainder of the period as the Firestorm continued to hit at an astonishing rate. The
Lancers managed just two field goals over the final 7:27 of the frame, but found success from the charity stripe to push their first quarter total to 20 points but still trailed 33-20.
Maddy Poynter had the first four points of the second quarter as she helped the Lancers chip the deficit back down to single digits.
After cutting Arizona Christian’s lead down to nine points Grace hit a lull offensively as the deficit ballooned to 21 points.
Grace responded well to end the half however as Emma Sperry scored her first collegiate points to spark the Lancers on an 8-2 run to pull the Lancers within 50-35 entering the halftime intermission.
Grace shot 36 percent from the field in the first half while Arizona Christian connected at a 61 percent clip. Grace narrowly trailed in rebounds (22-17) and committed just one more turnover than the Firestorm.
Poynter scored Grace’s first five points of the second half but Arizona Christian was able to maintain the 15-point lead.
The Firestorm offense continued to pour in the points pushing their lead to as many as 27 points late in the quarter. Sperry scored five straight points for Grace and Sophia Morrison added a late 3-point field goal to send the game into the final frame with Grace trailing 78-56.
Kensie Ryman scored on Grace’s first three possessions of the fourth quarter but a pair of trifectas from Arizona Christian kept their lead steady at 22 points.
Sperry continued to find her offensive touch in the quarter as the Lancers closed the deficit late in the quarter. Sperry scored eight of Grace’s 13 points as the Lancers ended the game on a 13-3 run but ultimately fell 98-86.
“Proud of the fight we showed against a really talented team”, said Grace head coach Dan Davis. “We put ourselves in a hole in the first quarter but showed tremendous grit in outsourcing them over the next three quarters. It was also great to see Sperry and Poynter play some big minutes as we continue to develop our depth. We just need a little more consistency on an individual and team basis.”
Grace finished the game shooting 42 percent from the field while Arizona Christian hit 58 percent of their shots. Grace grabbed 16 offensive rebounds and both teams finished with 16 turnovers.
Sperry had a breakout performance with 20 points while connecting on seven of her eight shots. Murphy narrowly missed a double double with 17 points and 7 rebounds while also adding 4 assists and 2 steals.
Morganne Houk, Ryman and Poynter also scored in double digits.
The Lancers will return to action on Tuesday for a showdown with Embry-Riddle.

Lancers Earn 10th Win Of The Season
SAN ANTONIO, Texas - Grace’s men’s basketball team opened up its trip to Texas with an 87-61 win over Texas A&M - San Antonio on Monday.
The No. 16 Lancers (10-3) used scoring from 12 separate players in Monday’s rout of the Jaguars. Ten players saw at least 10 minutes of court time.
Grace scored the first seven points of the game. Ian Raasch and Ian Scott were dominant early, combining to score the Lancers’ first 11 points.
A 3-pointer from Brett Sickafoose gave Grace a sizable 14-2 lead in the opening minutes.
The Jaguars managed to trim Grace’s lead to nine at one point, but the Lancers’ offense continued to outpace TAMUSA.
Marcus Davidson and Gage Sefton scored four points in the final minute of the half, including Sefton’s buzzer-beating layup.
The Lancers took a commanding 48-29 lead into halftime.
Grace shot 56 percent from the floor in the half. They assisted on 17 of the team’s 20 made field goals and turned the ball over just six times.
The Jaguars had 10 turnovers and were held to 41 percent shooting as a team.
Grace attacked the rim relentlessly to begin the second half, scoring 16 points in a row in the paint. Grace opened up a 29-point lead with 13 minutes remaining.
A triple from Justin DeGraaf helped push Grace’s cushion to 30, and the Lancers began to empty its bench midway into the half.
Grace led by at least 20 for the rest of the contest and cruised to the 26-point victory.
Raasch scored a game-high 19 points to go along with 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block and 1 steal, all while shooting 8 of 11 from the floor.
Sickafoose scored 14 points with a pair of 3-pointers, and Scott collected 12 points, 7 assists and 2 steals.
Gage Sefton racked up 8 points, 10 rebounds, 3 steals and 3 assists, DeGraaf had eight points and two blocks, and Isaac Schultz scored eight points.
Brycen Grabber handed out seven assists, Hunter Walston scored five, and Carter Stoltzfus, Cannen Houser and Cole Hayworth each added three points off the bench.
The Lancers will end their Texas stay with another game on Tuesday against Nelson.