PAINESVILLE, Oh. -- The Malone University women's basketball team opened up Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) play on Saturday afternoon with a trip to Lake Erie College.

Lake Erie (1-6, 0-2 G-MAC) held a 36-29 lead at halftime, but the Pioneers (5-1, 1-0 G-MAC) made a comeback attempt in the fourth quarter to pull out a 72-64 win.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Malone and the Storm were neck and neck throughout the majority of the first quarter, but Lake Erie went on a 7-0 run near the end of the quarter that gave them a 22-15 lead.

The Storm scored four unanswered points in the beginning of the second quarter that increased their lead to 29-16.

After an impressive layup by Madison Hunter with 5:13 left in the second quarter, the Pioneers decreased Lake Erie's lead to 29-21.

The Storm immediately answered back by going on a 7-2 run that allowed them to regain a double digit lead.

With 0:06 left in the first half, Robin Campbell converted on a layup that allowed Malone to trail 36-29 heading into the locker room.

The Pioneer's came out hot in the beginning of the third quarter, going on a 11-0 run capped off by a pair of free throws made by Holly Groff. 

Sydney Wyndgarden's layup with 1:01 left in the third quarter caused Lake Erie to tie the game.

The Storm took advantage of a turnover committed by Robin Campbell, and they immediately scored afterwards, giving them a 47-45 advantage over Malone.

With 7:11 left in the fourth quarter, Robin Campbell fired back with a layup to give Malone back a 51-49 lead.

A three-pointer from Alexis Hutchinson increased the Pioneer's lead to 58-51 at the 3:38 mark.

Lake Erie continued to hang tough, and they were able to go on 13-8 run to make it a two point game.

After shooting a series of free throws, Malone was able to pull away to win 72-64.


PIONEER POINTS

• Robin Campbell had another strong game. The Alliance, Ohio native scored 19 points. She was 6-6 from the field, and was 7-13 from behind the charity stripe.
• Alexis Hutchinson returned into the starting lineup after getting injured two weeks ago. Hutchinson had 16 points, three steals, and five rebounds. 
• Holly Groff (18) and Emma Kallas (12) all finished in double-digits for Malone offensively. Groff had six rebounds to lead Malone.
• As a team, the Pioneers shot 53.2% from the field, and had 22 points off turnovers.

WHAT'S NEXT?
Malone will travel back home to host Trevecca Nazarene University on Thursday, December 9. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m.