The Lourdes women's basketball team (20-6, 16-4 in WHAC) defeated Lawrence Tech (6-19, 5-15 in WHAC) 71 to 60 on Saturday afternoon in Southfield, Michigan.

Lourdes remains locked into a three-way tie for second place in the conference with Aquinas and Rochester Christian, all of which are 16-4 in the WHAC with two games remaining.

The Gray Wolves have the toughest schedule left out of the three teams. They will be taking on sixth-place Northwestern Ohio and fifth-place Siena Heights next week. Aquinas will take on eighth-place Cornerstone and winless Defiance. Rochester Christian has ninth-place Lawrence Tech and 10^th-place Madonna left. All three teams, along with Indiana Tech, have clinched home court advantage for the first round of the WHAC Tournament, meaning the Ebeid Rec Center will host a postseason game on Wednesday, Feb, 25, with the time and opponent to be announced.

1^st Quarter
The first quarter was neck-and-neck with the Blue Devils coming away with an 18 to 17 lead after the buzzer sounded. Junior guard Kaylona Butler led the Gray Wolves with 10 points in the quarter on 67% shooting from the field and two three-pointers made.

Butler had 26 points total on the night to lead all scorers and is averaging 21.0 points per game on the season, good for second-most in the conference.

Another big moment in the first quarter came when senior forward Camryn Ivy got her 28^th block of the season, tying the Lourdes single-season program record with Tiffany Scott and Mercedes Wagner. Ivy is now just a block away from being the standalone Lourdes single-season block record holder.

2^nd Quarter
The second quarter was again close with Lourdes holding a slight 33 to 31 advantage at the half. Senior guard Emma Pedroza led the team with six points in the quarter and had 15 total in the game. The Napoleon, Ohio native is now averaging just under 20 points a contest, good for third in the WHAC.

The Pedroza/Butler duo is the only combination of players in the top five in scoring in the WHAC from the same team.  

3^rd  Quarter
Lawrence Tech shot just 36.7% in the first half but had an offensive explosion in the third quarter, shooting 60% from the field with three shots made beyond the arc. The third quarter was the only quarter in the game where the Blue Devils didn't have the ball stolen at least four times by the Gray Wolves tenacious defense.

Lourdes still tallied 16 points in the quarter, but headed into the fourth down by six points after the Blue Devils ended the third on a 19 to 14 run over the final eight minutes.
 
4^th Quarter
Still down five with six minutes to go, the Gray Wolves turned to their defense to avoid the upset. Senior forward Tamyah Worthy had four steals in the last five and a half minutes, helping the Gray Wolves to force nine Lawrence Tech turnovers in the quarter.

The defense turned into quick transition buckets by the offense and Lourdes quickly went on a 15-0 run from the five to one minute marks, crushing the Blue Devils hopes of an upset. Lourdes finished the game trading free throws as the team eventually won by double digits.

Worthy finished the game with a season-high eight steals. The defensive masterclass came just a few days after she already had broken the Lourdes single-season steals record. She's now a couple steals away from being the first Gray Wolves player in history to reach 80 steals in a single season and is 20 away from catching Emma Pedroza on the all-time career steals list at Lourdes.

Stats
Lourdes held Lawrence Tech to five points in the fourth quarter on 6.3% shooting from the field (1-for-16). The defensive lockdown was eerily similar to the comeback victory earlier in the season to Cleary. Overall, the Lourdes defense was impressive, forcing 22 Blue Devils turnovers on a season-high 17 team steals.

Coach Bradford's Postgame Comments
"Finishing the week on a high note with a win is a big accomplishment for our team," Coach Bradford said. "We took on a lot this week. For the team to lock down their focus and finish the game the way we play, with our standard of energy from the bench to the floor, is something the team should be proud of. We had an awesome group of people cheering us on and we appreciate that support on the road and played with pride for LU."
 
Next Up
Lourdes takes on UNOH on the road in Lima, Ohio on Wednesday, Feb. 18 at 5:30 pm with WHAC tournament seeding on the line.