Nov. 23, 2013

Box Score

Nashville, Tenn. - The Grand Valley State women's basketball team dug itself out of an early hole to take a one-point lead into the locker room, before it eventually fell 71-57 to Missouri-St. Louis in Nashville Saturday (Nov. 23) afternoon.

The Lakers trailed by as many as 10 points in the first half before battling back to take the lead. With UMSL leading 32-24, GVSU went on an 11-2 run over the final 3:32 to go up by one at halftime.

Senior guard Dani Crandall's layup ignited the Lakers' run. Freshman guard Piper Tucker followed that up with a pair of free throws and sophomore center Jill Steinmetz drained a three-pointer to extend the run. Two freebies by junior guard Janelle McQueen gave GVSU its first lead of the game.

After the Tritons answered with a basket in the closing seconds of the opening frame, Crandall made a layup at the buzzer to give the Lakers their 35-34 lead at the break.

GVSU could not maintain the momentum it seized late in the first half, though. UMSL opened the second stanza on a 16-2 run to take a commanding 50-37 lead with 14:36 remaining in regulation and never looked back.

Crandall finished with a game-high 20 points and was 9-of-12 from the field. Steinmetz chipped in 11 points and added seven rebounds.

Next up for the Lakers, who are now 1-1 on the season, is their home-opener against Lewis on Saturday (Nov. 30) at 1:00 p.m. EST.