Second-Half Struggles Doom Jackets in Showdown at Bluffton

BLUFFTON, Ohio – Defiance took a nine-point lead into halftime against Bluffton on Wednesday night, but surrendered 52-second half points as the Beavers rallied to claim a 90-83 win in front of their home crowd. Defiance and Bluffton are now locked in a tie for sixth place with 4-5 records in the HCAC.

Defiance forced the Beavers into turnovers in their first three possessions of the game, and claimed an early eight-point lead less than two minutes into the opening period on a Molly Bateman three-pointer at the 18:11 mark. However, Bluffton responded with a 6-0 run, and eventually took the lead by feeding Beth Yoder, who scored 17 first-half points on six-of-eight shooting, including four-of-six from beyond the arc.

The Beavers held a six-point advantage with five minutes left before halftime, but the Jackets hit eight of their last 12 shots of the period, and ended the half on an extended 20-5 run to claim a nine-point edge at the break.

The nine-point lead would be Defiance's largest of the game, as the Beavers shot 64.0 percent from the field in the second period, and slowly chipped away before claiming their first lead in nearly 15 minutes when a pair of free throws gave Bluffton a one-point advantage. After a layup by BU's Alicia Amis put the Jackets behind by three, Erica King hit a triple to tie the game, 64-64, at the 9:21 mark.

Bluffton would pull away from that point, draining six of its next seven shots from the field to claim a ten-point lead with 4:20 showing. Defiance was able to cut the deficit to four points with 32 seconds left on a layup by Kim Comden, but Bluffton iced the game from the free throw line to seal the victory and extend DC's losing streak at Bluffton to four games.

Comden posted 18 points, on eight-of-12 shooting, to go along with 12 rebounds and two blocks. Hanna Firchau recorded her best stat line of the season with 12 points, five rebounds and three assists in 24 minutes.

The Lady Jacket will return to action on Saturday, January 22, when they host Rose-Hulman (6-9; 4-4 HCAC) at 1:00 p.m.