(Winona Lake, IN) - Concordia women's basketball opened their season with a nonconference road match at Grace College. The Cardinals jumped out to a 24-9 lead after the first quarter, but the Lancers eventually came back for a narrow 83-82 overtime win.
Abby Long led the team with 30 points. Lauren Borsenik had a double-double with 18 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. Jess Andrew and Brooke Brauher were in double figures with 14 and 10 points respectively.
Ryan Moorer opened scoring with a layup on an assist from Emily McCalla. Free throws from McCalla and a jumper by Brooke Brauher kept the offense going early. Abby Long nailed two triples and Lauren Borsenik began to control the paint making layups and free throws. Jess Andrew added a three-pointer and an Emily McCalla layup put CUAA ahead 24-9 after the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Cardinals continued to dominate the paint with two layups from Brooke Brauher and an "and-1" from Lauren Borsenik. Ryan Moorer also scored inside and Abby Long knocked down a jumper. Free throws from Long gave CUAA a 39-29 lead at halftime.
Jess Andrew scored the first eight points for CUAA in the third quarter, nailing two triples and a layup. Grace began to tighten the game, but Abby Long responded with a jumper and a three-pointer. Brooke Brauher added two free throws, but the Lancers continued to rally and CUAA led 54-52 after three quarters.
Abby Long opened the fourth quarter with two free throws. Grace briefly took the lead, but the Cardinals responded with a basket inside from Lauren Borsenik and two triples by Long. Brooke Brauher hit a jumpshot and Lauren Borsenik converted inside. Abby Long made free throws for a 70-65 lead, but Grace tied the game with a 5-0 run to send the contest to overtime.
Emily McCalla started overtime with a layup. Abby Long nailed a triple and Lauren Borsenik scored a layup. Long made free throws and Jess Andrew hit her fourth triple for an 82-78 lead at the 1:48 mark. Grace rallied to take an 83-82 lead with seven seconds remaining. After a Cardinal timeout, Abby Long had a shot at the buzzer but the Lancers held on for the win.
Concordia will travel to the Indiana Tech Classic this weekend in Fort Wayne, Indiana. They will face Indiana Northwest this Friday, November 1st, at 6pm.
