FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The No. 11-ranked Indiana Tech women's basketball team fell to No. 5-ranked Marian University, 73-66, on Friday evening inside the Schaefer Center.
Emma Wolfe had a team-high 14 points, two rebounds and two assists while
Alexis Hill had 12 points and 10 rebounds.
DeAnn Kauffman and
Kyra Whitaker each had 11 points, with the former adding eight rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Rachel Bell chipped in six points, eight rebounds and seven assists.
The Warriors had a pair of chances to take the first lead of the game, but the Knights got the first points of the night with 8:54 to play in the first quarter and never trailed for the rest of the contest. A triple from Wolfe and a basket from Bell brought Tech to within a point of the lead at 6-5, but Marian went on an 8-0 run to take a 14-5 lead with 2:22 left in the quarter. Five quick points from
Laney Steckler gave the hosts some momentum to cut the deficit to 16-10, but the visitors responded with a 10-0 run to lead 26-10 at the end of the period.
The Knights grew their advantage up to 23 points in the second as they led 37-14 with 5:23 to play in the first half, but the Warriors would not go down without a fight. A triple from Whitaker started a 12-0 run for Tech as they cut the deficit down to 11 points. Tech closed the half on a 5-0 run to make it a 40-31 game at the intermission.
Marian came out of the locker room looking to squash the momentum the Orange and Black had gained in the second thanks to a 13-4 spurt that put them up 53-35. Tech battled back with a 9-2 run to cut the deficit down to 11 points, and trailed by just 10 points at the end of the quarter with the Knights leading 59-49.
The Warriors were finally able to cut the lead down to single digits with six minutes left on the clock as Whitaker sunk another triple to make it a nine-point game, and a pair of free throws cut the Knight lead to 64-58 with 4:33 to play, but that would be as close as Tech would get as the Knights led by 14 with 2:46 to play and closed out the game with a three-possession lead.
Tech (8-3) returns to action on Monday as they start a quick two-game trip to the Volunteer State and take on Tennessee Wesleyan University to start things off. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m. from James L. Robb Gymnasium.
