Macie Stringfellow's (Perrysburg, Ohio/Perrysburg H.S.) basket with 1:07 to broke a tie and gave Lourdes the lead for good on Saturday afternoon as the Gray Wolves defeated the University of Northwestern Ohio 77-74 inside of Racer Gymnasium in Lima, Ohio.
 
"This was a team effort today," head coach Tandy Bradford said afterwards.  "The team really had to focus on each possession.  I am proud of how they dug down and played for the win because again every team in this league is going to bring their best every game."
 
Lourdes led by nine, 66-57, with six minutes to play when the Racers battled back to pull even at 72.  After Stringfellow gave the Gray Wolves the lead back, the defense got a stop and Nakiya Sigman (Lima, Ohio/Lima Senior H.S.) scored inside to push the lead to four.  Northwestern Ohio cut its deficit in half with 6.8 seconds to play before Taylor Thomas (Marshallville, Ohio/Chippewa H.S.) split a pair of free throws with 1.8 ticks left on the clock to secure the win.
 
Northwestern Ohio jumped out to an early 15-7 lead only to see the Gray Wolves tie the contest at 23 early in the second follow a three-pointer by Emma Pedroza (Napoleon, Ohio/Napoleon H.S.).  That was part of a 15-5 run that gave Lourdes a 31-26 lead with three minutes to play in the half before the Gray Wolves took a 34-32 lead into the locker room.
 
After the Racers retook the lead in the early stages of the third quarter, Lourdes went on a 16-7 run and led by as many as eight in the stanza before the hosts closed with five straight points to make it a 55-52 Gray Wolf advantage heading into the final period.  Lourdes then built the lead back to nine before the late comeback attempt by Northwestern Ohio.
 
Nadeen Jemaa (Perrysburg, Ohio/Perrysburg H.S.) led Lourdes with 16 points while Pedroza added 12 points.  Stringfellow finished with 11 points and Sigman had 10 more as four Gray Wolves finished in double figures.  Halle Barnett (Sylvania, Ohio/Southview H.S.) pulled down a team-high 11 rebounds as Lourdes finished with a 44-31 rebounding advantage.
 
Alysia Lawson led Northwestern Ohio (3-6, 0-4 WHAC) with 26 points while Alayha Allen tallied a double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds.
 
Lourdes (3-4, 2-2) will have a week off before returning to the hardwood next Saturday with a trip to Grand Rapids, Mich. to face Aquinas.  Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. inside the Sturrus Sports & Fitness Center.