A late rally just wasn't enough as the Lady Bruins basketball team dropped a tough road game on Thursday night in a 64-57 loss to Brevard College. With the loss, the team falls to 3-7 on the season.
"We really played a better game than the results show," Bruins Head Coach Mike LeViere said. "We struggled in the first half and it hurt us. We forgot to go over a screen or we let some talk affect us and we ended up forcing bad shots. We just needed to maintain our composure and keep focused."
The Bruins and Tornados had met just ten days ago with the Bruins winning 75-66. The team was beginning to find their groove winning two of their last three games. Unfortunately, the Bruins couldn't keep up their winning ways as they took the court against the Tornados.
Back-to-back three pointers by Brevard helped them jump out to and early lead in the opening quarter. The Bruins were able to battle back thanks to the interior play of the post players as Kylee Leffew and Delaney Edwards scored to help the team take an 8-6 lead. The Tornados closed out the opening frame with an 16-5 run as they led the Bruins 22-13 after one quarter of play.
In the second quarter, both teams stalled as it took over three minutes for a team to score. Sarah Thomsen knocked down a three-point shot to close the deficit. The Tornados answered with two-straight baskets as they stretched their lead to a double-digit advantage. Jatasha Hollinger hit a three with just under two minutes to play in the half to give Brevard a 38-22 lead. The Bruins were able to cut into the lead but still trailed 40-25 as they went into the break.
As the second half began, the Bruins knew they needed to get their offense going if they wanted to get back into the game. To cut into the lead, the Bruins were able to get to the free throw line where they were able to knock down shots. Still, the Tornados made shots when they needed to as they maintained a double-digit lead 56-40 at the end of the third quarter.
The Bruins came out in the fourth with an 8-0 run as they cut the lead back to single digits. Sydney Bedsaul and Gracen Ledford continued to help chip away at the lead with baskets but the Tornados still maintained the upper hand. With just under three minutes to play, Kylee Leffew scored on a jumper as the Bruins trailed 60-57. Unfortunately, that would be the last points the Bruins would score as the Tornados held on for a 64-57 win.
"We showed great composure and maturity to come back but we need to not put ourselves in that deep hole to begin with," Coach LeViere said. "To be down 20 and come back by playing great defense shows the great contributions we got from several players tonight."
Kylee Leffew led the Bruins with 13 points on the night while Delaney Edwards scored 11 to go along with 8 rebounds. The Bruins shot just 34% from the field for the game while losing the rebounding margin 49-42.
Next up, the team will be on the road on Saturday for their first NCCAA DII South Region matchup of the season. The team will play Trinity Baptist College in Jacksonville, Florida with a tip-off scheduled for 2 p.m.
