WINFIELD, Kan. – After a week-long break from competition for the Southwestern College women's basketball team, it was back to the hardwood for another Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) billing against the McPherson College Bulldogs on Saturday afternoon. In a battle in which the Lady Builders put together three highly competitive periods of play, their below-average second quarter would end up sinking them by a final tally of 71-59.

In the bout's first frame, Southwestern showed impressive fortitude to finish baskets in the paint, as four of their five made shots came from inside the lane. Their 5-of-13 (38.5%) line in the first was more efficient than the Bulldogs' 6-of-16 (37.5%) showing, affording SC the opportunity to build a significant advantage. After getting their lead to 13-6, McPherson would finish the frame on an 8-2 run to cut the Builder lead to just one at 15-14.

Things would continue to go the way of MC through the entirety of the second stanza, as the quarter was the Moundbuilders' biggest shortcoming in the tilt. The Builders' paltry 1-of-15 (6.7%) shooting clip in the frame, combined with one of the Bulldogs' best offensive quarters at 9-of-19 (47.4%), spelled disaster for Southwestern. After the unfortunate turn in the visitors' favor, the SC women trailed 33-20 at halftime.

Though the Builders only managed to shoot 2-of-13 from the field in the third frame, they still were able to compile 14 points, largely due to their 9-of-12 free-throw shooting clip. The Bulldogs shot 8-of-14 (57.1%), but only scored 17 points, having failed to make a three-point shot. The 17-14 deficit in the quarter would stretch the McPherson lead slightly, as they then held a 50-34 advantage.

Scoring came fast and furious in the fourth quarter, as both teams scored their game-high marks for points in a quarter. The Builders were raining down threes in the fourth, converting on five of their 10 tries from long range. They were 3-of-11 (27.3%) on all other attempts from inside the arc. A total of 25 points were scored by the Moundbuilders in the final 10 minutes, while MC countered with 21 points on 7-of-16 (43.8%) shooting and six made free throws on seven attempts. Ultimately, the 16-point deficit entering the fourth was just too much to overcome for Southwestern, as they ended the game with a 71-59 loss to the Bulldogs.

Macey Pond was the Builders' top scorer of the orange, heaving up 21 shots with six makes as a result. She shot 4-of-11 from deep and put up a total of 17 points in the tilt. She was also responsible for the team's only three assists. Her output was followed by D'Shonda Hunt as the only two players to score 10 or more points. Hunt was heavily reliant upon her free-throw shooting for her points in the game, drilling 12-of-16 from the charity stripe and making 2-of-6 from the field in the battle for 16 points.

Hunt's 11 rebounds in the tilt gave her a double-double for the afternoon, as she led the squad in that category. Pond and Christy Wiebe each had seven boards to clean up the majority of the rebounding duties for Southwestern, as well.

Continuing to show their importance, Pond and Hunt each tallied a pair of steals, while the only other theft came from Denisha Anderson. Hunt added a blocked shot to her tally to continue to stuff the stat sheet.

Though the Lady Builders (3-10, 0-7 KCAC) were unable to snag the victory over McPherson, large portions of this game served as huge improvements for the squad. They will now look forward to a battle against Bethany College and the Swedes on Tuesday, Dec. 13 at 6 p.m. in Lindsborg, Kan. to conclude the first semester portion of the KCAC women's basketball slate.  

--buildersports.com--