LIVONIA, Mich. – The Indiana Tech women's basketball team fell to No. 23^rd-ranked Madonna, 88-81, in their Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) opener on Wednesday evening at the Activities Center.
 
Kendall Knapke scored a career-high 33 points on 12-18 shooting, including 7-11 from behind the three-point line, and grabbed 10 rebounds for her first double-double of the season. Haley Cook chipped in 13 points, nine assists and seven rebounds while Keanna Gary grabbed 14 boards and added seven points. Taylor Seiss had seven points while Linsey Masnari tallied eight points.
 
The Crusaders would race out to a quick 7-0 lead in the first two and a half minutes of the game, with Michelle Hayes scoring 12 of her game-high 43 points in the quarter. Tech would close the gap to two at three different points in the opening period, but the hosts would end the quarter on an 8-1 run to head into the first break leading 25-16.
 
Madonna would continue to extend their lead throughout the second quarter, leading by as many as 14 with 3:54 to go in the half, but the Orange and Black would respond with an 11-5 run to end the quarter and head into halftime trailing 44-36.
 
A four-point play by Cook would give the Warriors a jolt of energy on their third possession of the third quarter as they continued to chop down the Crusaders lead, with Knapke doing much of the damage. The sophomore forward would hit a triple with 2:11 to go in the quarter to cut the deficit to two while Cook would tie it up with 19 seconds to go on a fast break layup, but Madonna would get a basket at the buzzer to take a two-point lead into the final 10 minutes of play.
 
A 7-0 for the hosts would give them a nine-point lead just 1:15 into the final quarter, but a three-pointer from Bella Lozano-Dobbs sparked a 7-0 run for the visitors to cut the deficit back down to two with 7:25 to go in the game. The Warriors would eventually tie it up at 78-all off a pair of free throws from Masnari with 2:36 left, but Hayes would answer right back with a jumper in the lane to give Madonna the lead right back.
 
The Crusaders would grow the lead back up to six, but Knapke would cut it in half with her seventh triple of the contest with 45 seconds to go. A pair of missed free throws from Madonna gave the Warriors an opportunity to tie it up, but a triple from Knapke wouldn't fall as the Crusaders were able to convert the rest of their trips to the charity stripe and send the Orange and Black home with their first loss of the season.
 
Tech (5-1, 0-1 WHAC) returns to action on Saturday when they travel to Siena Heights. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. from the SHU Fieldhouse.