GREENVILLE, Ill. – The Westminster College women's basketball team battled back from a 23-point first half deficit, but it wasn't enough as the Blue Jays dropped a 76-69 St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference road game to Greenville (20-4, 14-1).
Mirrakohl Johnson led Westminster (18-6, 11-4) with 17 points while Kendahl Adams added 15 and Mikalyn Callahanchipped in 10.
"We dug ourselves a big hole early and just couldn't overcome that deficit against the conference champions," Westminster Coach James Arnold said.
The Blue Jays found themselves down early in the contest, 5-0, but battled back with a 6-0 run to grab a short-lived 6-5 advantage. The Panthers roared back with a 15-0 charge to close out the quarter and lead 20-6 after the first period.
In the second quarter, the Greenville lead grew to 25-6 before a jump shot by Johnson ended a nearly eight-minute scoreless skid for Westminster. The Panthers would lead by as many as 23 points before taking a 41-25 advantage into the locker room at intermission.
But the Blue Jays battled back after the break with a 5-0 run to cut the Panther lead to 11, 41-30. The Blue Jays managed to chip away at the Greenville lead and were able to pull within six points, but could not get over the hump down the stretch.
"I did love our fight in the second half," Arnold said. "That toughness will go a long way as we wrap up the regular season on Saturday and prepare for the SLIAC tourney."
Westminster shot 34 percent from the field in the first half, but warmed up to shoot 48 percent in the second half; 41 percent for the contest. Greenville shot 52 percent in the first half and 47 percent for the game. Westminster outrebounded the Panthers, 36-29, but the Blue Jays committed 22 turnovers compared to just 16 for Greenville. The Panthers outscored Westminster off of turnovers, 23-14, and the Greenville bench outscored Westminster's, 28-18.
Brittany Lopez and Wesley Woodard led Greenville with 16 points each; Morgan St. James added 11 and Jantzen Michael chipped in 10.
Westminster returns to action on Saturday when the Blue Jays travel to MacMurray.
