ADRIAN, Mich. — The Greenville University women’s basketball team opened their 2021 season Friday night, Jan. 15. The Lady Panthers would tip-off against the Lady Bruisers of Adrian College in an away game. This was the first meeting of the schools in competition.
The Panthers would open with a slow start, making 21 percent of their shots during the first quarter. They would fall behind early by as far as 17 points.
Meanwhile, during the second quarter, Adrian would only add three points to their lead, heading into halftime with a 42-22 lead.
Adrian would outdistance Greenville by an 18-15 mark in the third quarter. However, the Panthers would manage to rally, reducing the final deficit to under 20 points.
Unfortunately, it was not enough as the Panthers would lose on the road 72-54 to start their season.
Behind the stats
Madelyn Stephen would open her sophomore season with a 14-point, eight-rebound effort. Her stats would lead Greenville in both categories.
The Panthers would end the game converting less than one-third of their shot attempts (19-for-60). In three-point tries, Greenville would be 5-for-21.
Rounding out Greenville’s top five scorers are Haven Robertson with 10 points, and Ally Cantrill, Ashley Anderson, and Amanda Brooks with seven points apiece.
Rounding out Adrian’s top five scorers are Sha’Trice Graves with 13 points, Chelsea Palmer with 12, Kiaya Warner with 11, Rachel Bucher with 7, and a three-way tie between Addison Bergman, Taylor Besgrove, and Rylee Campbell with 6 points each.
What’s next for these teams?
The Panthers (0-1) would stay in Adrian overnight to play another game on Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. Eastern/2 p.m. Central. The Lady Bruisers would advance to 2-5 with the win.
Box score
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greenville | 8 | 14 | 15 | 17 | 54 |
| Adrian | 25 | 17 | 18 | 12 | 72 |
Saturday competition ends with a closer margin
The Lady Panthers would return to action Saturday afternoon following a loss Friday night. Despite a valiant effort by Greenville, the Panthers would fall short at Adrian 52-50.
The deciding shot came from a Graves layup with a minute and eight seconds remaining in the game to break a 50-50 tie in the fourth quarter. Despite two attempts in the final 41 seconds of the game to send the game into overtime, Greenville could not convert. This would include a contested jumper by Anderson from the baseline. It would unfortunately bounce off the rim as time expired.
Behind the stats
Rounding out Greenville’s top five scorers are Ashley Anderson and Madelyn Stephen with 16 points apiece, Haven Robertson with 6, and a three-way at 3 points apiece for Lauren Eagleson, Sway Denton, and Nailah Ray.
Anderson would make six of ten field goals, additionally picking up six rebounds. Stephen would make all of her free-throw shots and rack up three rebounds. Eagleston would dish out three assists. Meanwhile, Stephen, Abigail Reinneck, and Ally Cantrill would steal the ball twice apiece.
Rounding out Adrian’s top five scorers are Chelsea Palmer with 13 points, Sha’Trice Graves with 12, Makenna Wilson with 9, Rylee Campbell with 8, and Kiaya Warner with 6.
In addition, Graves would amass 16 rebounds and three blocks. Rachel Bucher would dish a game-high six assists and five rebounds. Warner would additionally rack up four assists and three rebounds.
What’s next for these teams?
The Lady Panthers (0-2) will return to action next Saturday, Jan. 23 with a 2 p.m. Central tip-off against Concordia University at Chicago.
The Lady Bruisers (3-5) will return to action on Wednesday, Jan. 27 with a road trip to Olivet College. Tipoff will be around 7 p.m. Eastern.
Additionally, Adrian College is now 2-1 in lifetime action against the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
Box score
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greenville | 13 | 7 | 10 | 20 | 50 |
| Adrian | 18 | 7 | 8 | 19 | 52 |
This story is based on news releases from Greenville University (Friday recap) and Adrian College (Saturday recap).
For more sports news, follow Jake Leonard on Twitter @JakeLeonardWPMD and Midwest Sports Network @MWSNsports.
Leonard is the editor-in-chief of Heartland Newsfeed, which can be found on Twitter @HLNF_Bulletin. News updates are also pushed out to Facebook, Reddit, Telegram, Flote, and MeWe.
