The Hillsdale College women's basketball team made a spirited fourth quarter rally, cutting a 20-point deficit entering the quarter to five with 33 seconds to play, but couldn't come all the way back in a 75-66 loss to McKendree in a neutral-site game played at Quincy University in Quincy, Illinois on Saturday.
Senior Sydney Mills scored 10 of her 13 points in the fourth quarter to help the Chargers make a late push, and junior Lauren McDonald also made big contributions offensively as the Chargers shot 52% from the floor in the final period and nearly overturned a deficit that had grown as large as 23 points in the third quarter.
Ultimately, however, the Chargers couldn't make up for a rough first quarter that saw the Bearcats jump out to a 16-point lead. Hillsdale's slow start was compounded by 22 turnovers, which improved as the game wore on but did damage to the Chargers' cause early.
McDonald had a big game for the Chargers, leading Hillsdale with 17 point and just missing a double-double with nine rebounds and three assists. Mills added a 13 point, 10 rebound double-double as well for Hillsdale, and junior Caitlin Splain hit three 3-pointers and chipped in 11 points as well.
Junior Kendall McCormick added 10 points, three rebounds, three assists and four steals to give Hillsdale four double-figure scorers, an encouraging sign that things are moving in the right direction for the Chargers offensively. Ashley Konkle added four points, five rebounds and three blocks, and Savannah Smith chipped in four points, four rebounds and three assists.
The Chargers are 1-3 overall now, and will begin their home schedule on Tuesday against Lake Superior State at 5 p.m. after spending the first two weeks of the season on the road.
Photo by Charles Miller