CANTON, Ohio -- The Malone University women's basketball team celebrated graduate player Lexi Manos on Saturday prior to a crucial Great Midwest Athletic Conference showdown with the University of Findlay Oilers. 

Unfortunately the celebration was cut short as the Oilers (10-9, 10-9) used a huge third quarter effort to escape Osborne Hall with a 61-56 win over the Pioneers (7-10, 7-10 G-MAC).

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
The Malone offense was clicking on all cylinders early as a three-pointer from Alexis Hutchison and a jumper from Robin Campbell gave the Pioneers a quick 5-0 lead to start the game. 

The Oilers responded with seven points of their own, but when Lexi Manos drilled a three-pointer to put Malone back on top 10-7 the Pioneers did not trail again for the remainder of the first half. 

Olivia Clark converted on a pair of free throws late in the quarter which gave Malone a 15-12 lead after the first ten minutes of play. 

The Pioneers led by as many as six points at two different times in the second quarter. Early on Hutchison made it 23-17 on one of her eight three-pointers of the afternoon. A few minutes later a jumpshot from Robin Campbell put the Pioneers ahead 28-22 with 4:07 left in the second quarter. 

Findlay continued to do enough to hang around though. The Oilers got to within two points late in the quarter, but a pair of Robin Campbell free throws allowed Malone to take a 30-26 lead to the halftime locker room.  

Unfortunately for the Pioneers, the momentum shifted in the third quarter. Findlay turned up the defensive pressure and limited Malone to just six points in the third quarter. On the flipside the Oilers poured in 21 points of their own, and carried  a 47-36 lead into the final quarter. 

Findlay opened the fourth with a free throw to stretch their lead out to 12 points before the Malone offense went to work. Hutchison connected on three more baskets from three-point range, and a layup from Emma Kallas cut the deficit down to one possession with 6:07 left to play in the game. 

A couple of possessions later another basket from Kallas got the Pioneers to within one at 53-52. Findlay pushed their lead back out to five points with just 1:41 left to play, but Malone answered with another run. 

Two more free throws from Campbell made it 57-54. The Pioneers then got a stop on a steal from Madison Hunter. Kallas was fouled on the ensuing possession, and converted on both of the shots to get Malone to within just one point with seven seconds left to play. 

Unfortunately the Oilers scored the final four points of the game from the charity stripe to escape Osborne Hall with a 61-56 win.

PIONEER POINTS

• For the third straight game Alexis Hutchison was the catalyst for Malone's offense. She finished with a game-high 24 points, all of them coming on three-point baskets. She was 8-14 from beyond the arc. 

• Robin Campbell was the only other Pioneer player in double-digits. She scored 19 points. 

•  Although Holly Groff was held scoreless for the first time this season, she pulled down a team-high 8 rebounds and dished out a team-high 4 assists. 

• Malone's defense forced Findlay into 19 turnovers and turned them into 26 points on the offensive end of the floor. 
   

WHAT'S NEXT?
The Pioneers will head to Ohio Valley University on Tuesday February 16. Tip off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.