The Malone University women's basketball team suffered a 63-54 setback to Walsh University Saturday afternoon in Osborne Hall to fall to 7-9 on the season and 5-7 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference. The Cavaliers, meanwhile, improved to 10-7 on the year and 7-4 in the G-MAC after ending the Pioneers' three-game winning streak.
 
Recap
In a low-scoring game as expected, the Pioneers scored just nine points in the opening stanza, including five from Holly Groff and two each from Baylen Dyrlund and Sydney Wentling. The Cavaliers, who entered the game with the number one scoring defense in the G-MAC, held a 16-9 lead going into the second quarter.
 
An open layup two minutes into the second quarter lifted Walsh's lead to 18-9 and forced Malone head coach Rick Tice into a timeout. Following that timeout, the Malone offense exploded. Back-to-back threes from Chrissie Vaughan sparked a 25-12 run over the next eight minutes that featured four more three-pointers, including two each from Groff and Paiten Strother. An old-fashioned three-point play by Groff late in the frame put Malone on top 34-30 going into the half.
 
The Cavs came out on an 11-0 run to begin the third quarter and went back in front before Malone answered back with eight straight points to regain the advantage. Wentling's jumper with 4:16 left in the period made it a 42-41 ball game, but Walsh answered with a layup on the very next possession and never trailed again.
 
After leading 49-42 through three quarters, the Cavaliers' advantage swelled to 55-42 on the 14-0 run before another three-point play by Groff and a triple by Wentling cut the lead to seven with 4:42 remaining. The seven points was a close as Malone would get, though, as Walsh pulled away for the win.
 
Game Highlights
-Malone struggled offensively, shooting just 32.8% (20-for-61) from the field and committing 17 turnovers.
-The Pioneers finished 9-of-28 (32.1%) from three, but were only 2-for-12 in the second half.
-Walsh shot 28-for-63 (44.4%) overall, including a 9-for-12 (75.0%) mark in the pivotal third quarter in which they outscored Malone 19-8.
-The Cavaliers dominated points in the paint, 44-22, and outscored Malone 17-7 in points off of turnovers thanks in large part to 11 steals.
-Despite the loss, Malone remained in a tie for the 8th and final playoff spot in the G-MAC standings.
 
Malone Individual Highlights
-Holly Groff, the G-MAC Player of the Week, scored a career-high 20 points to lead the Pioneers. She added six rebounds and four assists.
-Chrissie Vaughan tallied 12 points, five rebounds, three assists, and two steals in all-around effort.
-Sydney Wentling delivered another solid performance, finishing with 12 points. It was her fifth straight game scoring in double figures.
-Paiten Strother added six points and a career-high eight rebounds.
 
Walsh Individual Highlights
-Freshman guard Kimmie Borck scored a team-high 17 points with three assists and two steals.
-Alex Hochstedler chipped in with 14 points.
 
Up Next
Malone will travel to West Virginia next week to meet Davis & Elkins on Thursday, January 25th before squaring off against Alderson Broaddus on Saturday the 27th.