Box Score
The Lady Bruins battled hard on the road Thursday afternoon in Montgomery, Alabama, but it wasn't enough as the team fell to LaGrange College 73-60.
"I'm really proud of the team for competing the way we are," Bruins Head Coach Mike LeViere said. "I wish we could have rewarded ourselves with a win but we are continuing to grow and get better every day."
The Bruins opened the season with back to back wins but have since lost three straight to fall to 2-3 on the season. The Bruins shot 44% from the field but struggled from beyond the arc shooting just 20% on the night. The rebounding margin was also a struggle for BJU as the Panthers out rebounded the Bruins 42-28.
In the opening minutes, the Bruins jumped out to an early 7-2 lead after Sha'Ron Brunson finished a three-point play. The Panthers came back with a 7-0 run to overtake the lead as they closed the first quarter up 20-18 over the Bruins.
The freshman for the Bruins stepped up in the second quarter as Gracen Ledford and Julia Simmons helped the team battle back to tie the game 27-27. Faith Hart also got into the mix for the Bruins but the Panthers again closed out the quarter again behind strong rebounding to take a 35-29 halftime lead.
As the third quarter began, the Panthers built their lead to double digits leading 41-31. The Bruins battled back as Madison Shupe knocked down a three to cut into the lead. Shupe scored four points for the team to close out the quarter as the team trailed LaGrange 56-47 with just one quarter to play.
A 6-0 run by the Panters to begin the 4th quarter put the Bruins on their heels as LaGrange took a 62-47 lead. The Bruins tried to battle back, but the deficit was too much to overcome as the Bruins dropped their third straight game.
"We played well at times and Lagrange is a good team," Coach LeViere said. "The effort was there but the execution was just off a little at times and that resulted in the loss. We can't turn the ball over 20+ times and get outrebounded and expect to win a game."
With the loss, the Bruins fall to 2-3 on the season. The team had just one player in double figures as Sarah Thomsen finished with 10 points. Madison Shupe had 9 to go along with 5 rebounds. Next up, the Bruins will compete in day two of the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament in Montgomery, Alabama as they battle Agnes Scott College on Friday.
