Lady Saints Drop Jayhawk Opener in El Dorado

EL DORADO, Kan. – In a game of runs, it was the 16^th-ranked Butler Grizzlies that got the better of the 10^th-ranked Seward County Lady Saints 65-54.  Seward moves to 6-2 overall and 0-1 in Jayhawk play, while Butler goes to 10-0 overall and 1-0 in Jayhawk play.

Seward jumped out to a 6-0 run on their first two possessions as Lexi Hernandez and Aquila Mucubaquire both connected on a three. A timeout by the Grizzlies stopped the early run and started one for Butler, quickly tying the game at eight. After Butler took a 12-11 lead with three minutes to play, the Lady Saints went on an 8-3 to take a 19-15 lead after the first quarter, but a buzzer beating three switched the momentum in the Grizzlies favor.

It was all Butler in the second quarter, scoring 25 points against the normally stout Seward defense.  After making baskets on two of their first three possessions, the Lady Saints went on a four-minute scoring drought, while the Grizzlies went on a 14-3 run. Those would be the last points by the Lady Saints for the quarter, ending on a four-and-a-half-minute scoring drought as the Grizzlies extended their lead to 14 by a score of 40-26.

The third quarter started sloppy for both sides, but the Lady Saints quickly for their rhythm, going on a 14-3 run to cut the lead to just three points, capped off with a steal and fast break basket by Hernandez. Hernandez came away with a steal on the ensuing possession which ended with a Carla Covane putback. The defensive pressure put on the Grizzlies by Seward held Butler to just seven third quarter points with five coming from free throws. Despite the third quarter surge, the Lady Saints still had ground to make up in the fourth, trailing 47-44.

The game of runs continued as the Lady Saints began to struggle in the fourth quarter, failing to make a field goal for the first five minutes before Covane finished a contested layup.  The Grizzlies used the drought to their advantage, extending their lead to eight points. The drought was too much for the Lady Saints to overcome, falling to the Grizzlies by ten points, 65-54.

Seward shot 38.9 percent (21-of-54) from deep, but once again struggled from deep, hitting just 5-of-24 (20.8%) from behind the arc. The Lady Saints were outrebounded 40 to 29, with the Grizzlies coming away with 13 offensive rebounds. Butler shot 42.9 percent (24-of-56) for the game, but just 20 percent (2-of-10) from deep.

The Lady Saints were led on offense by Karolina Szydlowska (15 pts) and Carla Covane (14 pts). While those two shot over 50 percent from the field combined (11-of-19), the rest of the team struggled, going just 10-of-35.

Seward will return to the Greenhouse on Saturday (Dec. 1) for their home conference opener.  They will play the Cloud County Thunderbirds, with opening tip at 6:00 p.m. Tickets can be picked up at Wendy's.