Senior guard Jalaya Lewis scored a career and team-high 21 points for the LaGrange College women's basketball team during a 78-72 setback to Pensacola Christian Tuesday evening in Mariotti Gym.
Lewis shot 7 of 15 from the field and 2 for 5 on 3-pointers for the Panthers (3-3). Junior guard Gracie Brunel finished with 15 points, six rebounds and four steals.
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Junior center Jada Strickland recorded 10 points and six boards, while senior guard Jada Brown pulled down a team-leading 10 rebounds. Senior forward Megan English tallied nine points and five rebounds.
Lauran Alvarez led the way for the Eagles (4-1, 2-0 NCCAA) with 16 points, 25 rebounds, eight assists and two steals. Leah Phelps chipped in for the visitors with a game-best 22 points.
A jumper by Phelps with 3:12 left in the first quarter gave the Eagles a 16-10 advantage. LaGrange scored eight of the final 12 points in the quarter, as a jumper by Brunel cut Pensacola Christian's lead to 20-18 at the end of one.
In the second, the visitors embarked on a 14-2 run, taking a 40-25 advantage on a jumper by Alvarez with 4:33 on the clock. Brown stole the ball, and then set up Strickland for a layup, cutting the deficit down to 42-33 with 50 seconds remaining in the half.
A layup by Phelps gave Pensacola Christian the largest lead of the game at 51-35 with 6:48 on the scoreboard in the third. The Panthers responded with a 23-7 surge, as English evened the game at 58-58 on a layup with 1:52 on the clock.
The Eagles took a five-point lead into the fourth, and then regained a double-digit cushion at 73-63 on a jumper by Sindy McElhaney with 3:58 left. LaGrange was unable to get closer than six the rest of the way.
LaGrange led the points-off-turnovers category, 24-18, and the second-chance-points statistic, 16-12. Junior forward Karson Troth gave LC strong minutes off the bench, finishing with four points, six rebounds and one block.
The Panthers are 6-2 all-time against the Eagles. LaGrange won the first five games of the series, including a 64-39 win on Dec. 6, 2008. During the last meeting, LC earned a 67-47 triumph on Nov. 23, 2019, in Mariotti.
The Panthers open USA South action Saturday with a 2 p.m. game at Berea.
Assistant Sports Information Director Trevor Wenners can be reached at twenners@lagrange.edu.
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