Grace Women’s Basketball 70, Madonna 37

A suffocating defensive effort by Grace’s women’s basketball team led to a blowout win on Saturday.

The Lady Lancers rolled past Madonna 70-37 at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center in Grace’s home opener.

Grace improved to 2-0 on the young season, winning both games by a combined 43 points.

The Crusaders had no response to Grace’s defensive energy. Madonna committed 31 turnovers, resulting in 34 points for Grace.

In the opening minutes both teams seemed content to feel each other out before they began to get into an offensive rhythm.

The Lady Lancers grabbed their first lead of the game after Maddie Ryman hit a 3-point shot that vaulted the Lancers into a 7-4 lead.

The deep shot seemed to ignite Ryman as she was responsible for the next 10 Lancer points. The junior guard also ripped four steals in the opening quarter.

Grace ended the quarter on a 5-0 run to go up 19-9.

The second quarter was a defensive battle between the two teams as neither team could get a shot to fall early.

Grace missed 11 of its first 13 shots in the second stanza, but their defensive intensity prevented the Crusaders from mounting a comeback.

Grace and Madonna combined for 13 points and 14 turnovers in the second quarter as Grace took a 25-16 lead into the half.

It was the third quarter that saw the Lady Lancers take a stranglehold on the game. Grace used a 13-0 run in the opening minutes to grab a 19-point cushion. Ryman and Kiersten Poor each had five points during the charge.

Grace took a comfortable 20-point lead into the fourth quarter, and the Lady Lancers continued to click.

Grace’s best offensive quarter was its last, tallying 25 points as Madonna grew fatigued. The Lady Lancers used their bench at the end, cruising to the final 33-point win.

Grace had 17 assists on 25 made field goals in the win. Madonna was shut out on 3-pointers, making none of its 11 attempts.

Ryman enjoyed a strong game with 22 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals and 4 assists, and Poor finished with 13 points and two steals.

Karlee Feldman just missed her second straight double-double, finishing with 9 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocked shots. Kenzie McMahon added 6 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals.

Peyton Murphy had 6 points, 4 steals and 2 assists, and fellow freshman Karissa Lukasiewicz tallied four points and three steals.

Sally Mortensen, Kensie Ryman and Taylor Cooney each scored their first collegiate points during Saturday’s win.

The Lady Lancers begin a three-game road trip next week. Grace plays at IU Kokomo on Wednesday before traveling to Michigan for a weekend tournament at Lawrence Tech.

Grace Men’s Basketball 100, UNOH 65

A 27-0 scoring spurt in the first half led Grace’s men’s basketball team to a second straight blowout, turning back Northwestern Ohio (UNOH) 100-65.

Elijah Malone scored 12 early points to spark the decisive run. The agile big man recorded a dunk, a trio of free throws and added a 3-point field goal in the opening minutes of the contest.

Grace led 9-5 at the 13:45 mark and built the lead to 36-5 before UNOH scored again with 6:57 left in the half. Frankie Davidson accounted for 10 points during the surge, and freshman Carter Stoltzfus added nine points on three long-range field goals.

“We came out with some aggressiveness and a lot of energy,” said Grace head coach Scott Moore. “We had them on their heels early.”

The Racers managed to find some success late in the opening half, cutting the margin to 46-25 at the break.

Davidson took over early in the second half, scoring 15 of his game-high 31 points in less than eight minutes. Overall, Davidson hit 12-of-19 field goals, including 4-of-5 from long range in just 25 total minutes of action.

The Lancers rebuilt the lead throughout the second half, with the largest margin coming in the final minute when Marcus Davidson scored to make it 100-63.

Malone ended with 14 points and 11 rebounds for Grace, and it was the play of several true freshmen that added to the team’s success. Ian Scott recorded his second straight double-double with 23 points and 11 rebounds, while Stoltzfus ended with 18 points, including four 3-pointers.

“Getting 41 points from two true freshmen on only 21 field goal attempts is pretty good,” commented Moore.

Newcomers Brycen Graber and Brett Sickafoose also played significant minutes for the Lancers.

Grace shot 38-of-66 (.576) from the floor and hit 12-of-18 (.667) from long range. In the first two games of the season, the Lancers have hit 24-of-45 (.533) on 3-pointers. The team has also recorded 51 assists.

“We have done a lot of good things,” said Coach Moore about the opening weekend of action. “I think our transition offense was exceptional, and our half-court defense was good in spots. We’ve also been super unselfish. It feels really good just to be playing again and with a crowd in the stands. The energy in the building the last two days was unbelievable.”

The Lancers return to the floor on Tuesday when they host Siena Heights.

Grace Women’s Soccer 5, Mt. Vernon 0

Grace’s women’s soccer team flexed its offensive muscles on Saturday in the regular season finale.

The Lady Lancers (11-5-1, 6-2-1 Crossroads League) scored five times in a 5-0 rout of Mt. Vernon Nazarene at 1st Source Bank Field.

With the win, Grace wraps up the No. 4 seed in next week’s Crossroads League Tournament. The Lady Lancers will play a familiar opponent in the quarterfinals, hosting Mt. Vernon Nazarene again on Saturday at 1st Source Bank Field.

Saturday will see Grace host two soccer quarterfinal matches at 1st Source Bank Field. Grace’s men (the league’s No. 2 seed) will host Taylor on Saturday in a postseason doubleheader. Times for the two matches have yet to be announced.

The teams began the match slowly. A steady, light rain created slick conditions on the pitch. The players struggled to connect in possession during the opening minutes as wet conditions played a factor.

Grace struck first on its initial attempt at MVNU’s goal.

JJ Aalbue sparked the play with an incisive pass to Alexis Larimore. Larimore took care of the rest, sidestepping a Cougar defender and pounding her shot past the goalkeeper to give Grace an early edge.

As the half progressed, so did Grace’s chances. Larimore seemed to threaten every time she touched the ball along the right side of the field.

The second goal for the Lady Lancers seemed destined to happen and eventually did with seven minutes remaining in the half. Larimore fittingly created the goal, producing a run at MVNU’s net. She squared a pass in front of goal to Sam Vondersaar who passed the ball cleanly into the net.

Danae Moriarty nearly netted Grace’s third goal of the half shortly after, lofting a high shot that whisked just above the crossbar.

Grace went into halftime with a 2-0 lead. The Lady Lancers had a 6-5 edge in shot attempts, although none of the MVNU’s shots were taken from within the 18-yard box.

Six minutes into the second half, MVNU survived another Grace chance. After a pinpoint precise corner kick by Lea Moessinger, Madison Tuma had a pair of chances from close range. But the Cougars’ defense scrambled to prevent the third goal from scoring for Grace.

JJ Aalbue produced Grace’s third goal with a laser. Tuma’s initial attempt was blocked toward the top of the box. Aalbue took care of the rest, belting a shot into the back of the net.

Aalbue was just getting warmed up, however. Larimore was tackled just outside the box to set up a free kick. Aalbue took the free kick with confidence, lacing her shot past the defending wall as the ball ricocheted off the bottom of the crossbar and into the net.

The fifth goal was a complete team effort. Ashley VandenBoom and Lea Fricke connected on a quick attack, resulting in a clean look for Tuma. Tuma converted the shot in the box.

VandenBoom almost scored a goal of her own in the final minutes. Her curled effort was saved by the goalkeeper, who pushed the shot off the crossbar.

The match ended with Grace owning an 18-9 advantage in shots. Libby Stratton registered the shutout in goal by making four saves. She was protected well by defenders Erin Crew, Aitana Arguis, Kimberly Aalbue, Amber Meade and Anna Kuhl.

Mt. Vernon Men’s Soccer 2, Grace 1

Grace’s men’s soccer team lost for the first time in six games on Saturday, falling 2-1 in overtime at Mt. Vernon Nazarene.

Despite the loss, the Lancers (9-9, 6-3 Crossroads League) still grabbed the No. 2 seed in next week’s Crossroads League Tournament. Grace will host Taylor on Saturday at 1st Source Bank Field in a doubleheader. Grace’s women’s team will also host a quarterfinal matchup on Saturday with the times to be determined.

Grace was riding a five-game winning streak and held a 1-0 lead until the 71st minute on Saturday. But a comeback by the Cougars forced OT where MVNU claimed a golden goal winner.

Neither team could score in the opening half. Grace tried eight shots with a corner kick before halftime, including three shots from Ethan Vigario.

The scoreless drought quickly expired in the second half. Just two minutes into the second half, the Lancers scored.

Josh Angel-Craven passed to Martim Cardoso, who beat MVNU’s goalkeeper for his team-leading 11th goal of the season.

Vigario tried a shot on goal two minutes later, but the Lancers’ attack was largely quieted for the middle portions of the half. After Vigario’s attempt was saved, Grace did not try another shot for the next 26 minutes.

During that time, MVNU ramped up its offense. The Cougars had four corner kicks as they pressed for an equalizer, eventually finding one in the 71st minute.

Neither side could produce a late winner in regulation despite chances on each end of the field.

The match headed to overtime where Grace struggled to generate opportunities. The Cougars took three shots with a corner kick in the first five minutes of the extra period, finding the golden goal winner on a quick counterattack in the 96th minute.

Vigario tried four shots with two on goal, Felipe Gruber had two shots on goal, and Cardoso shot three times for Grace.

The Lancers will have their eyes set on winning the CL Tournament in the next two weeks. The winner of the tournament receives an automatic bid to the NAIA National Championships. Grace is hoping for a return trip to the NAIA tournament after competing last year.

Grace Volleyball 3, Spring Arbor 1

Grace’s volleyball team picked up a critical victory to wrap up the regular season on Saturday.

The Lady Lancers hit the road, taking down a hot Spring Arbor squad 3-1. The Cougars entered Saturday’s contest by winning four of their past five, including a pair of upsets.

But the Cougars had no answer for the offense of the Lady Lancers (13-17, 6-12 Crossroads League) on Saturday. Grace pounded out 60 kills while holding the Cougars (14-17, 7-11 CL) to 47 kills.

Cassadi Colbert amassed a career-high 19 kills in the win, and Anna Frey had a big double-double with 15 kills, 19 digs and 3 block assists.

With the win, Grace will shift its attention to the postseason. The Lady Lancers will travel to No. 21 Indiana Wesleyan in the quarterfinals of the CL Tournament. Time for Saturday’s quarterfinal matchup has yet to be announced.

Spring Arbor started the match sharply, grabbing a 25-16 win in the opener. Grace had eight attack errors in the set.

The Cougars opened up an early lead in the second set and still led 16-11 at the midway mark. But a pair of kills from Frey sparked a 4-0 run, and two kills later from Colbert allowed Grace to tie the score at 20-20.

The Cougars managed to take a 22-21 lead in the final stages, but SAU did not score again. Grace closed out the set with kills late from Colbert, Frey and Katie Swanson in a 25-22 victory.

The score remained close for much of the third set. Grace used a 6-2 spurt to gain separation, but SAU rallied late to within one at 24-23. A block point from Swanson and Alisha Leffring secured the 25-23 win for Grace, giving the Lady Lancers a 2-1 edge in sets.

The fourth set began with three straight points by Grace, but SAU jumped to life with an 11-4 run to pull ahead.

The Cougars held a seemingly comfortable 20-14 lead late in the fourth set, but Grace had a dramatic comeback in store.

A pair of kills each by Colbert and Kate Sperry started Grace’s run as the Lady Lancers’ attack jumped into gear. Grace smashed out eight kills in quick succession, turning a 20-14 deficit into a 23-22 lead.

SAU tied the score with a kill on the next play, but Grace secured the wild rally with a kill by Frey and a block from Swanson. The Lady Lancers ended the set on an 11-3 run.

Leffring was efficient offensively with 10 kills on a .318 percentage, adding two block assists. Jenna Mueller was busy at the net with 4 kills, 2 solo blocks and 4 block assists, and Swanson added 3 kills, 2 solo blocks and 3 block assists.

Gina Novotny led all players with 20 digs, Grace Erwin added nine digs, and McKenzie Stakely added seven.

Morgan Syoen (22 assists, 9 digs) and Riley Owens (20 assists, 9 digs) directed Grace’s offense to the win.