LAMONI, Iowa - The Lady Owls came up just short against the Lady Yellow Jackets Saturday afternoon as junior forward Alexis Matthews-Fells hit three free throws with less than a second remaining to stave off their comeback.
The two teams battled back-and-forth all day, but Graceland used a 29-20 advantage in the second quarter to create enough separation between the teams. William Woods made a late rally and tied the game at 75-all, before committing the foul on Matthews-Fells.
The Lady Owls (2-3) shot a mere 38 percent (26-of-67) from the floor and 31 percent (7-of-22) from 3-point range. Defensively, William Woods was even worse as it allowed Graceland to shoot 50 percent (32-of-64) overall and a staggering 66 percent (8-of-12) from behind the arc.
Sophomore guard Kaycee Gerald produced 23 points for a game-high and was the Lady Owls' leading scorer. Junior forward Sommer Burgard added 13 points on 66-percent shooting (4-of-6) and freshman guard Tori Nesslage chipped in 12 to round out double-digit scorers for the Lady Owls.
Junior forward Jamiese Wiley led Graceland (2-3) with 21 points, senior guard Emily Work produce 15 and Matthews-Fells added 14.
William Woods was outrebounded 44-35 despite getting seven from Burgard. Assists also favored Graceland as it owned a 23-13 advantage, while senior guard Jasmine Brown led the Lady Owls with four.
William Woods plays an exhibition game at NCAA Division I Western Illinois University at 7 p.m. Tuesday. The Lady Owls then start American Midwest Conference play at home against Stephens College at 7 p.m. Thursday.