MADISON, Wis. - The Edgewood College women's basketball suffered through a long second period drought, and couldn't make it up despite a strong second half push. The Eagles fell to Lakeland College 54-38 in a Thanksgiving Saturday NACC showdown at the Edgedome. Zoey Dougherty led the Eagles with 11 points, as the team fell to 1-3 overall and 0-2 in the NACC.
The Eagles looked strong through the first period, jumping out to an 8-3 lead after five straight points from Dougherty. After Lakeland College (1-4, 1-0 NACC) hit a three-pointer to put the Eagles back in front, they went on to hold a 14-11 lead at the end of the first period. However, the Eagles shooting turned cold in the second half. Lakeland College outscored the Eagles 21-2 as Edgewood College went 1-for-9, to take a 32-16 lead into the locker room.
Lakeland College would lead by as many as 23 in the third period, until the Eagles started to chip away at the Muskies' advantage. The Eagles closed the third down 45-30 after five straight points on baskets by Dougherty and Hannah Euting and a free throw from Sydney Smith.
That run continued into the fourth period as Dougherty scored four straight points and Erin Morovits nailed a three-pointer. Rachel Pope sank a free throw to complete a 13-0 run and put the Eagles right back in the game at 45-38. However, Lakeland's Kayla Clark broke the streak with a three-pointer and the Eagles wouldn't score again.
Dougherty finished with a team-high 11 points, while Pope finished with 10 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Sierra Jiran added nine points and eight rebounds, while Smith and Allison Gordon had two assists apiece. The Eagles shot 25 percent from the field on the day.
Lakeland College received 14 points from Clark and 13 more from Bailey Grayvold. Rachel Stankevich scored eight points and grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds. Lakeland hit six three-pointers in the first half to build their lead, but the Eagles held them to just 2-for-14 from the arc in the second half.
Edgewood College will play their first NACC road game on Wednesday night at Alverno College. The Eagles and Inferno will tip off at 7:00 p.m. in Milwaukee.
