WINONA LAKE – Playing its second ranked opponent in as many days, Grace College’s women’s basketball team faded late in a loss to No. 9 St. Xavier on Saturday. The 20th-ranked Lady Lancers (2-5) stayed within striking distance of the Cougars for most of the contest, but a scoring drought plagued Grace down the stretch as they lost 84-63. Grace trailed by just six points at 66-60 when Juaneice Jackson scored five straight points with 7:34 remaining. But the Lady Lancers’ offense hit a wall for the rest of the afternoon. Over the final seven minutes of action, the Lady Lancers scored just three points on a trey from Allison Kauffman. The Cougars proceeded to end the game on an 18-3 run to clinch the victory. The first half of action saw seven ties in a fast-paced, high-scoring effort for both squads. Both teams made over 50 percent of their field goals in the opening period as the Cougars led 46-41 at the break. While the Cougars’ offense continued to click at a high rate in the second half (52 percent shooting), the Lady Lancers had the opposite effect. Grace connected on a paltry 6-of-24 from the floor (25 percent) to go along with 8-of-15 from the free throw line in the second half. The Lady Lancers also struggled in ball control without their starting point guard Gabby Bryant (injury). Grace committed 20 turnovers, allowing the Cougars to score 31 points off Grace’s mistakes. Jackson finished with 19 points, five rebounds and three steals for Grace, while Allison Kauffman recorded 18 points and eight boards. Dariyan Morris notched 10 points, and Chloe Pridgen added eight points and five boards. Morgan Stuut led St. Xavier with a game-high 35 points and eight rebounds, while Suzie Broski added 16 points. Despite playing two consecutive Top-25 ranked opponents, Grace’s opposition only gets tougher in the next game. The Lady Lancers will travel to NCAA Division I opponent IPFW on Wednesday for an 11:30 a.m. tipoff.
ST. XAVIER 84, GRACE COLLEGE 63 St. X – Morgan Stuut 12-17 8-8 35, Suzie Broski 7-13 2-2 16, Maloree Johnson 3-5 0-0 6, Caitlin McMahon 1-3 0-0 2, Chrissy Heine 1-2 1-2 3, Revi McMahon 1-2 0-0 2, Sidney Prasse 0-0 0-0 0, Margaret Wildner 32-56 15-16 84. Grace – Juaneice Jackson 7-20 3-6 19, Allison Kauffman 6-12 4-4 18, Dariyan Morris 3-7 3-6 10, Chloe Pridgen 3-8 2-4 8, Sarah Feasby 1-1 2-3 4, Darian Patton 2-5 0-0 4, Kelsey Sule 0-1 0-0 0, JoEllen Fickel 0-0 0-0 0, Tiffany Petro 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-54 14-25 63. Three-pointers – Grace 5 (Jackson 2, Kauffman 2, Morris); Rebounds – St. X 28 (Stuut 8), Grace 29 (Kauffman 8); Turnovers – St. X 15, Grace 20
