Free Throw Shooting Hurts the Jackets in 73-60 Loss at Franklin

FRANKLIN, Ind. – The Lady Jackets have not won a game at Franklin College since joining the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference prior to the 2000-01 season, and that trend continued on Saturday afternoon, as DC dropped a 73-60 decision and fell into fifth place with a 4-4 mark in the conference.

Defiance claimed its biggest lead of the contest after just four minutes of action, when Molly Bateman knocked down a three-pointer to give the Jackets a 9-4 advantage, but the Grizzlies would come back to knot the game, 11-11, at the 13:02 mark, and eventually took a two-point lead on a Sarah Condra layup during their next possession.

Jenna Deskins put the Jackets back ahead by one with a clutch three-pointer with just under 10 minutes left in the half, sparking a back-and-forth flurry of baskets by both teams that saw six lead changes during a five-minute span. The Grizzlies took the lead on a pair of free throws with 4:40 showing on the clock, and never looked back as they extended their lead to six going into the break.      

Defiance played aggressively against the HCAC's top-ranked defense, but left too many points off the board, shooting four-of-13 from the charity stripe in the period while the Grizzlies knocked down eight-of-nine from the line. The Jackets also turned the ball over 13 times in the opening half, allowing Franklin to take a 12-2 advantage on points off turnovers.

Defiance recorded back-to-back field goals to open the second half and cut the deficit to four points with 18:27 remaining, but Franklin answered with an extended 14-7 run to claim an 11-point lead midway through the period. Courtney Schmersal hit a three-pointer to spark a quick 7-0 run for the Jackets, capped by a pair of free throws by Tasha Stucke that once again cut the deficit to four, but that was as close as the Jackets would come as the Grizzlies ended the game on a 16-5 run to seal the victory, and extend their winning streak to 11 games against Defiance in front of their home crowd.

Bateman posted a game-high 13 points in the contest to claim her ninth double-digit scoring output in 11 games, while Erica King tied her career-high with seven rebounds to lead DC on the glass. The Lady Jackets were tagged with 20 turnovers, and are now 0-7 when recording more turnovers than their opponents.

Defiance (6-9; 4-4 HCAC) will play at Bluffton University (5-9; 2-5 HCAC) on Wednesday, Jan. 19, with the tip-off set for 7:30 p.m.