Lions Fight Off Raven Comeback in Physical Contest

In the opening game of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) season, the Anderson University women's basketball team took on the Mount St. Joseph University Lions in a physical matchup in Cincinnati. The Ravens (1-5, 0-1) fell to the Lions (3-3, 1-1) by a final score of 89-76 on Saturday.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Lexi Dellinger opened the game, draining a three to get the Ravens on the board first. The Lions quickly answered with a three of their own.
• Anderson then went on a 5-0 run over the Lions to take the lead in the first quarter.
• At the end of the first quarter, the Ravens held a 21-19 lead over the Lions after Payton Moore made two free throws.
• The Lions came back immediately in the second quarter and took the lead. They spent the remainder of the quarter building a lead over the Ravens, at one point leading by 13 points with 2:51 left before the half.
• Heading into halftime, the Ravens trailed the Lions 47-37.
• During the third quarter, the Ravens tried to close the Lions lead, coming within five points two separate times, but the Lions would pull away with a 61-46 lead heading into the final quarter.
• A tough battle would ensue as the Ravens tried to come back. Ultimately, Mount St. Joseph secured an 89-76 victory over Anderson.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• From the 3-point range, the Ravens shot 13-of-35 (37.1 percent) outshooting the Lions who went 11-of-32 (34.4 percent)
• By the end of the game, there was a total of 59 fouls, with the Ravens receiving 35 and the Lions receiving 24.
• The Ravens capitalized on second-chance points, picking up 14 during the contest.
• Lexi Dellinger once again led the Ravens with another high scoring game. She went 11-for-20 from the field, made 8-of-15 from the perimeter, and 6-of-9 from the free-throw line for a total of 36 points. Dellinger's 36-point game tied her for sixth place in the Anderson University record books for point in a game. She is also tied in third place for draining eight 3-pointers in the game. During the game, Dellinger contributed five rebounds, and led the team with five assists, three steals, and two blocks.
• Payton Moore led the Ravens with nine rebounds.

UP NEXT

The Ravens now return back to O.C. Lewis Gymnasium for a five-game home stint. Starting Monday with a non-conference matchup, the Ravens welcome the Eagles of Spalding University (3-4). Tip-off between the Ravens and Eagles is set for 7:30PM.