WINONA LAKE – In a game that featured three major runs, Saint Francis’ 15-2 run late in the second half proved enough to knock off Grace’s women’s basketball team 62-56 Saturday at the Orthopaedic Capital Center.. Kiera Gray’s 21 points were not enough for No. 16 Grace, and senior Hayley Cashier added 13 and moved to 999 career points in the loss. The Lady Lancers (13-7; 5-3 MCC) struggled to find their shooting touch after halftime. Grace missed their first seven attempts and only shot 36 percent from the field after halftime. With the score close at 43-39 in Saint Francis’s favor, the Cougars (13-7; 5-3 MCC) held Grace in check offensively the next six minutes to open up an insurmountable 58-41 lead with 4:26 to play. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Kiera Gray made things interesting at the end as Grace battled back to within seven with 1:17 left, but it was too little, too late for the Lady Lancers. The first half was also a half of runs. Grace struck first when they opened up a 9-2 lead, but the Lady Lancers would go ice-cold offensively after that. Grace did not score for the next seven minutes after their initial lead as they watched the Cougars forge ahead 15-9. Saint Francis experienced their own drought late in the first half, however. The Cougars went scoreless for five minutes, and Grace’s nine straight points allowed the Lady Lancers to take the momentum into halftime leading 26-24. But that's when Grace's offense started to falter. Overall, Grace turned the ball over 14 times (compared to 13 for Saint Francis), but the biggest statistical advantage was in shooting percentage. Saint Francis for the day shot 42 percent while Grace hit 20-of-54 (37 percent). Gray’s 21 points came with a trio of 3-pointers and three assists. Juaneice Jackson notched 11 points and three boards off the bench, and Danielle Boykin added five points and six boards. Cashier, who also grabbed eight rebounds, become the 13th Lady Lancer in program history to score 1,000 career pionts Wednesday night when Grace welcomes Marian University to the OCC.
