Feb. 1 – GROVE CITY, Pa. – The Bethany College women's basketball team dropped a Presidents' Athletic Conference contest to Grove City on Saturday afternoon, 75-69.
Grove City would start the game off by scoring the first six points to take an early 6-0 lead. The run was capped off at the 18:26 mark, after Jackie Stewart converted on a pair of free throws.
The Bison would respond quickly, however, as they went on a 20-10 run over the next seven minutes, to take a four-point lead (20-16) with 11:15 left to play in the first period. Lauren Simpson (Washington, Pa./Trinity) would cap the scoring outburst, after she drained a three-point shot.
Not to be outdone, the Wolverines then went on a 17-3 run to retake a nine-point advantage with 5:07 left in the first stanza. The run was finished off with a lay in by Natalija Galens
The rest of the half saw Bethany cut the deficit to just four-points, with Grove City out in front 38-34.
The Bison came out in the second half ready to play, as they embarked on a 23- 10 run to reclaim a nine-point advantage (57-48) with 12:00 minutes remaining in the contest.
The run was highlighted by Taylor Verrico (Monaca, Pa./Quigley), who went six-of-six from the charity stripe and scored nine points.
Grove City would once again respond, this time going on a 16-8 run that would give them a two-point advantage (65-63) at the 6:15 mark of the second period. The run was capped off by Kelsey Shirey, who converted on a pair of free throws.
After the Bison knotted the game up at 67 on a pair of free throws by Sami Schott (Caldwell, Ohio/Shenandoah) at the 4:45 mark, the Wolverines would retake a three-point lead (70-67) on a three-point basket by Shirey with 4:32 left.
Grove City would never relinquish the lead again and would win by a score of 75-69.
The Bison were led by Mikyla Tipton (Wellsville, Ohio/Wellsville), Skylar Williams (Jefferson Hills, Pa./Thomas Jefferson) and Verrico. Tipton had a great game, scoring a team-high 14 points and notching six assists. Williams showed off her passing skills, matching a career-high eight assists, while Verrico chipped in 13 points and three rebounds.
Bethany is back in action on Wednesday, Feb. 5, when they travel to New Wilmington, Pa., for a conference contest with Westminster College. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.