Griffins Hold Off MacMurray Comeback

St. Louis- Fontbonne University women's basketball was a part of an oddly paced game last evening. Fontbonne held a 43-23 advantage over MacMurray College at the end of the first half. MacMurray held the upper hand during the second half (41-25), allowing the Griffins to walk away with the 68-64 victory. Fontbonne jumps to 3-5 in SLIAC play as MacMurray slips to 2-6.

The Griffins shot out of the gate with a 5-0 lead with the Highlanders scoring the next three points. Fontbonne would score 15 straight over the next three and a half minutes for a 20-3 lead. Up by ten with 6:50 to go in the first half, the Griffins went on another major scoring adventure posting a 19-4 advantage in four minutes.

MacMurray crawled back during the second half as Fontbonne's shooting slipped. The Highlanders cut the 20-point halftime deficit to nine with 8:05 left in the game as Griffin Chelsey Freymuth received her fifth and final foul. Missed buckets by Fontbonne and successful bucket by MacMurray allowed the Highlanders to pull within two with 1:47 to go, but wouldn't get any closer.

Fontbonne's mere 17% shooting from the arc hurt their long-range shooting, but it was their 63% free-throw shooting that ultimately gave them the advantage. In a weird ending, MacMurray finished with 41 rebounds and Fontbonne with 29, statistics the men would match exactly a little later on.

Nicole Joerger recorded 16 points for Fontbonne while DeAmbra Pilkinton scored 10. Olivia Hollander pulled in seven rebounds for the Griffins. Joerger only scored two points in the second half, aiding in the crucial final two minutes of the game.

Cydny Saxer scored 13 points for MacMurray with Megan Duisen notching 10 with eight rebounds. 

Fontbonne hosts Iowa Wesleyan at 1pm this Saturday. Live stats and video are available here.