In the final tuneup before the NCCAA National Championships, Grace’s women’s basketball team beat Concordia 75-69 on Wednesday.
The Lady Lancers (18-15) will enter the national tournament as the champion of the NCCAA Midwest Region. Grace hosts NCCAA Nationals at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center from March 14-17.
The complete tournament field, game schedule and brackets for the national tournament will be revealed on March 11.
Four players scored in double figures for Grace, led by 16 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals from Vironnica Drake.
In the first quarter, Grace began to gain separation from the Cardinals (20-13) with a 10-1 run. Kelsie Peterson and Brooke Sugg both hit triples, and Kaylie Warble scored four points.
Grace led 24-17 after one quarter and increased that cushion to 41-30 by halftime.
The Cardinals whittled away at Grace’s lead and only trailed by four late in the third quarter.
Concordia eventually tied the score at 56-56 with 6:30 remaining in the contest, setting the stage for a tightly-contested finish.
Lexi Minix put Grace back on top with a pair of free throws on the next possession, and Sugg followed that up with a 3-pointer to extend the lead.
Warble maintained the Lady Lancers’ momentum with six points over the next two minutes, bumping Grace’s lead back up to nine.
Concordia did its best to claw back with a pair of 3-pointers over the final minutes, but Grace secured the regional win from the free throw line.
Warble racked up 15 points and 11 boards off the bench, and Sugg tallied 14 points, 3 assists and 2 steals.
Micaela Box scored eight points to go along with three assists, and Kyannah Stull added two points and five boards. — from gclancers.com