Griffin bench lifts Fontbonne over Principia; Jordan posts team-high

St. Louis, Mo. - The Fontbonne women's basketball team handed Principia their seventh loss in a row tonight as the Griffins advance to 5-9 overall and to an even 4-4 in SLIAC play.

The Griffins trailed early and tried to tire out the small squad of Panthers by full-court pressing but Principia held their own for the remainder of the first quarter. Fontbonne inched closer in the second quarter as Principia led 21-20. Lauren Willis dribbled the ball down the middle of the court and assisted Erika Kuhn's baseline layup to give Fontbonne the lead 22-21. The Panthers answered with a three-pointer but Jessica Jordan tied the game on a layup as she was fouled by Kara Johnson. Johnson was then charged a technical foul and Colleen Ahearn gave Fontbonne a 25-24 lead, which the Griffins carried to halftime. Following Ahearn's free-throw, Jordan stole a pass and took the ball down the court for the fast-break layup and three-point advantage. Fontbonne went into the locker room on a seven-point run to lead 35-29. When Fontbonne took the lead indefinitely Willis was the only starter on the court. Haring led the Griffins at halftime with six rebounds while Jordan secured 11 points and Kuhn 9.

Third quarter play was very different for Fontbonne as the Griffins scored their first 12 points on layups. Nicole Joerger, Haring and Olivia Hollander combined in various plays to achieve the six buckets, which gave them a 47-35 lead. Hollander's last layup sparked a Griffin seven-point run.

Fontbonne's bench got extended playing time in the fourth quarter but the young Griffins committed 10 fouls in the heat of the moment, allowing Principia to shorten their lead just a little.

Joerger posted nine second-half points on her way to 13 total while Jordan finished with 15 and Hollander 10. Haring was everyone on the court with eight rebounds, seven assists, six points and four steals. Five of her rebounds were offensive.

Principia's bench was also distributed a technical foul. The Griffins found it hard to contain Johnson who scored 25 points and had eight rebounds and eight assists.

Fontbonne is on the road next week taking on MacMurray Wednesday and Blackburn in Carlinville, Ill. Saturday.