MT. PLEASANT, Ia. - Westminster women's basketball suffered an upset loss to Iowa Wesleyan, 59-57.
The Blue Jays fall to 6-6 overall and 3-2 in St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play.
"So much credit goes to Iowa Wesleyan who just outworked us and played so tough today," said Westminster Head Coach James Arnold.
The Tigers immediately set the tone by getting out to a 5-0 start. Two three-pointers from Kendahl Adams eventually tied game at 11, but the Tigers knocked down a three-pointer to keep their lead. After one quarter, Westminster found themselves down 16-14.
At the 7:57 mark of the second quarter, Makayla Jackson hit a freethrow to give Westminster its first lead of the game at 17-16. The Blue Jays continued to chip away, knocking down freethrows to go up 21-16 with under five minutes remaining in the half. With 13 seconds remaining in the half, the Tigers made an old-fashioned three-point play to go into the half 25-24.
Westminster continued its offensive struggles in the second half, never regaining a lead and going down by as many as 12 points. A three-pointer from Adams to end the quarter left Westminster with a 44-35 deficit.
Kelsey Ray and Adams teamed up to open the fourth quarter with five points to put the Blue Jays back in the game. The Tigers pulled back ahead by double-digits with five minutes remaining in the game, but Ray and Adams again teamed up to add nine more points and put Westminster down by just three points with 45 seconds left to play.
With five seconds remaining and down five points, Kendal Miller was able to knock down a three-pointer, but it wasn't enough to give the Blue Jays a win.
"I hate that we had to learn this lesson but it's a lesson we can definitely learn from," said Arnold. "In league play and particularly road conference play, you must come ready to play every single time out."
Adams led all scorers with 19 points and five rebounds.
"As a group, we need to refocus and get back to work and get ready for a big week ahead," said Arnold.
The Blue Jays return home Jan. 10 to face Eureka. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.
