The Highlights

Scores, news and more from Lawrence University Athletics

Lawrence rally comes up just short against Alverno

The Lawrence University women’s basketball team rallied from a 19-point second-half deficit but fell just short in a 54-52 nonconference loss to Alverno College Monday night at Alexander Gymnasium.

Nakita Chadwick poured in a career-high 18 points for Lawrence (0-8), and Alex Deshler pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds for the Vikings.

Alyssa Jensen posted a double-double with 15 points and a game-high 11 rebounds for Alverno (5-6). Hannah Galstad paced the Inferno with 16 points.

Alverno  broke the game open midway through the first half. The Inferno went on a 15-0 run to build a 28-10 lead and held Lawrence without a point for 6:09.

Alverno led by as many as 19 points in the first half and were up 35-19 at the break. Jensen hit a 3-pointer to open the second half and build the lead back to 19 points, but Lawrence began chipping away at the advantage midway through the second half.

After Alicia Kontowski made a free throw to give Alverno a 48-34 lead with 11:14 remaining, Lawrence scored the game’s next eight points to trim the margin to 48-42 with 6:47 left.

A pair of free throws from Jensen finally broke a 7:14 scoreless streak for the Inverno and gave Alverno a 50-42 lead.

The Vikings continued to slice into the margin with Deshler hitting a pair of free throws, Chadwick dropping in a layup and Kanesha Walker converting two free throws to cut the lead to 52-48 with 2:39 left.

The teams then traded missed shots before Kayla Kennedy made a free throw for Alverno with 1:01 left, but Walker countered with a layup for the Vikings with 48 seconds left to cut the margin to 53-50.

After an Alverno miss, Walker was fouled and hit two free throws with 27 seconds left to trim the margin to 53-52. The Vikings fouled Kontowski with 17.1 seconds left and she made one free throw.

The Vikings got the ball to Chadwick on the baseline but her layup slipped off the rim and Alverno secured the rebound as time expired to seal the win.

Lawrence returns to Midwest Conference action on Wednesday when it hosts Monmouth College.

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Vikings edged by Manchester

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The Manchester College men’s basketball team overcame a four-point deficit in the final 37 seconds to down Lawrence University 61-59 in a nonconference game Sunday.

The game was part of the Cruzin Classic and was played at Northwood University.

Tyler Crisman scored a game-high 19 points to pace Lawrence (4-4). Erik Borresen added 12 points and a game-high nine rebounds for the Vikings. Chris Siebert added 10 points for the Vikings.

Tyler Henn led Manchester (6-3) with 17 points.

Crisman hit a pair of 3-pointers in the final 1:22 of the first half to give Lawrence its biggest lead of the game, 38-27, at the break.

The Spartans went on a 9-0 run to open the second half and cut the margin to 38-36 with 17:17 remaining. The teams then traded the lead midway through the second half.

Lawrence led 57-52 after Conor Klusendorf’s layup with 4:54 left. Neither team scored until Mitch Schaefer hit a 3-pointer with 2:43 left to cut the margin to 57-55.

The teams traded missed shots until Klusendorf was fouled with 48 seconds left. He made both free throws to give Lawrence a 59-55 lead.

Jordan Moss converted 1 of 2 free throws on the next possession for the Spartans with 37 seconds remaining. A turnover off a Henn steal gave the ball back to Manchester, and Nathan Ferch’s layup with 23 seconds left cut the lead to 59-58.

Henn stole the ball again, and he hit a layup with 11 seconds left to give Manchester a 60-59 lead. Crisman missed a 3-pointer for Lawrence with three seconds left and Ferch grabbed the rebound and seal the win.

Lawrence takes a break for the holidays and doesn’t return to action until it hosts Monmouth College in a Midwest Conference game on Jan. 5.

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No. 14 St. Mary’s holds off Lawrence

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Erik Borresen poured in a career-high 30 points, but the Lawrence University men’s basketball team came up just short in an 89-80 loss to No. 14 St. Mary’s (Md.) College on Saturday.

The game was part of the Cruzin Classic and was played at Nova Southeastern University.

Borresen hit 13 of 19 shots from the floor, and the 6-foot-8 center was 3 of 3 from 3-point range. He also grabbed five rebounds and had six assists.

Chris Siebert added a double-double for the Vikings with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Tyler Crisman added 14 points for Lawrence (4-3) and Jon Mays tacked on 12.

Sam Burum led St. Mary’s (9-2) with 25 points and 10 rebounds. Alex Franz added 24 points for the Seahawks.

St. Mary’s pulled away in the final minutes of the first half by going on a 9-0 run to grab a 47-30 edge. Siebert hit a jumper to trim the margin to 47-32 at the break.

The Seahawks led 55-40 after James Davenport’s 3-pointer with 15:30 remaining in the contest. Siebert scored on a conventional three-point play to spark a 17-4 Lawrence run over the next four minutes.

The Vikings hit seven consecutive shots from the floor as Crisman and Conor Klusendorf scored five points apiece during the outburst. Borrensen’s jumper with 11:37 left capped the run and cut St. Mary’s lead to 59-57.

The Seahawks recovered and built the lead back to as many as nine points. Lawrence closed to five points at 79-74 with 2:46 left, but Sam Burum hit back-to-back shots, sandwich around a Siebert jumper, to give the Seahawks an 85-77 lead with 45 seconds left.

The Seahawks then hit four consecutive free throws in the final 17 seconds to seal the victory.

Lawrence is back in action on Sunday when it faces Manchester College.

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Vikings snuff out Prairie Fire

GALESBURG, Ill. — The Lawrence University men’s basketball team held off a late rally by Knox College on Wednesday night and posted a 74-69 Midwest Conference victory.

All five starters scored in double figures for Lawrence (4-2, 3-0 MWC), which remained unbeaten in league play.

Conor Klusendorf and Erik Borresen both posted double-doubles for the Vikings. Klusendorf had 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Borresen scored 13 points and grabbed 11 boards.

Jon Mays led Lawrence with 19 points, and Tyler Crisman added 17 points. Chris Siebert chipped in with 10 points and a team-high seven assists.

Joe Kozak led Knox (1-7, 0-5) and all scorers with 27 points, and he pulled down a game-high eight rebounds.

Lawrence opened the game up early in the second half. The Vikings went on a 16-6 run, capped by Klusendorf’s jumper, to grab a 53-42 lead with 13:48 remaining.

The Vikings built the lead to 13 points before Knox rallied. Knox scored 12 consecutive points to trim Lawrence’s lead to 61-60 with 4:25 left.

Borresen then hit a jumper for the Vikings, and Klusendorf followed with a 3-pointer. Siebert then hit a jumper and Lawrence pushed the lead back to 68-60.

After Kozak hit a 3-pointer, Knox was forced to foul. Lawrence hit 6 of 8 free throws in the final 47 seconds to seal the victory.

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Free throws, turnovers doom Vikings in loss to Knox

GALESBURG, Ill. — The Knox College women’s basketball team used a huge advantage at the foul line to help carve out a 74-50 Midwest Conference victory over Lawrence University on Wednesday.

The Prairie Fire (3-5, 2-3 MWC) shot 43 free throws, and Lawrence (0-7, 0-3) was whistled for 28 fouls and had three players foul out.

Knox made only 27 free throws in its 43 attempts, but the Prairie Fire still managed to make more fouls shots than the Vikings attempted. Lawrence was 14 of 24 from the line.

Jenny Haskell paced Knox with 16 points. Krystyna Williams added 15 points and Abby Owens had 14 off the bench.

Nakita Chadwick had a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds for Lawrence before fouling out. Kanesha Walker added 10 points and grabbed eight rebounds before she fouled out.

Lawrence also was hurt by 29 turnovers.

The Vikings fell behind early and trailed by double digits at 16-6 just 6:43 into the contest. Lawrence cut that margin back to six points in the first half but trailed 37-25 at the break.

Knox came out in the second half and scored the first five points to snuff out any hopes of a Lawrence comeback. The Praire Fire would lead by as many as 28 points.

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Johnson nabs MCHA Defensive Player of the Week honor

Lawrence University standout Evan Johnson has been named the Midwest Collegiate Hockey Association Defensive Player of the Week.

Johnson (Suwanee, Ga./Pomfret), a senior goaltender, was chosen after a stellar performance in Lawrence’s 1-1 overtime tie at UW-Superior on Dec. 7.

Johnson stopped 35 of 36 shots against the 15th-ranked Yellowjackets. Johnson was especially good on the penalty kill as Superior went 0-for-6 on the man-advantage. Johnson made three of his biggest saves of the night in killing off a pair of 5-on-3 situations and a 4-on-3 situation.

Johnson, who was chosen as Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this season, improved to 5-4-1. He now has a 3.31 goals against average and a .905 save percentage.

Lawrence, which is now 2-2-1 against nonconference opponents this season, doesn’t return to action until it travels to Northland College on Jan. 7.

Lawrence drops game to Clearwater Christian

CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Lawrence University women’s basketball team dropped a 60-53 nonconference decision at Clearwater Christian College on Friday night.

Katie Mullens scored 22 points to pace Clearwater Christian (1-6), a member of the National Christian College Athletic Association. Kelly Fitchner added 14 points and Krystina Pipersberg added 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Cougars.

Alex Deshler paced Lawrence  (0-6) with 12 points, and she grabbed nine rebounds. Kanesha Walker added 10 points, and Nakita Chadwick had eight points and a game-high 12 rebounds.

Lawrence jumped out to an 11-0 lead against Clearwater’s man-to-man defense, but the Vikings had trouble once the Cougars went to the zone.

Lawrence hit only 19 of 69 (27.5 percent) shots from the floor and connected on only 3 of 15 (20 percent) shots from 3-point range.

The Cougars rallied in the first half and led 30-25 at the half. Lawrence kept it tight throughout the second half but overcome the Cougars.

Lawrence forced 27 Clearwater Christian turnovers, and Deshler picked up a game-high five steals. The Cougars did shoot a more respectable 40.8 percent (20-49) from the floor and hit on 35 percent (7-20) of its 3-point shots.

Lawrence returns to action next Wednesday when it resumes Midwest Conference play with a game at Knox College.

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Vikings lose heartbreaker at Southeastern

LAKELAND, Fla. — The Lawrence University women’s basketball team dropped a 59-57 nonconference game at Southeastern University on Wednesday night.

Freshman Alex Deshler scored 14 points to pace Lawrence (0-5). Senior forward Katie Van Es added 12 points and senior forward Kanesha Walker added 10.

The Vikings trailed 35-24 at the break but mounted a comeback in the second half. Lawrence rallied and led by as many as four points in the final minutes.

The Vikings led 57-54 before Southeastern’s Liz Capps was fouled and made both free throws to cut the lead to one with 1:26 left.

The Vikings turned the ball over the next possession with a shot clock violation and the Fire got the ball back with 55 seconds left. The Vikings fouled Ashley Wilson, who made one free throw to tie the score at 57-57.

After a Lawrence miss, Southeastern (2-3) got the rebound and Wilson was fouled again. She made both free throws to give Southeastern a 59-57 lead with 25 seconds left.

Deshler drove to the basket on the ensuing Lawrence possession, but Karleigh Smoak stole the ball for the Fire. She was fouled but missed the front of the bonus and Lawrence grabbed the rebound with 9.5 seconds remaining.

Deshler drove the length of the floor but lost control of the ball out of bounds as time expired.

Tori Robison led the Fire with 17 points and eight rebounds. Capps added 16 points and Wilson finished with 12.

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Vikings skate to overtime tie at 15th-ranked Superior

SUPERIOR, Wis. — The Lawrence University hockey team skated to a 1-1 overtime tie at 15th-ranked UW-Superior on Tuesday night.

Lawrence (6-4-1) was forced to kill off a penalty in the final four minutes of regulation to force the overtime.

The Vikings got on the board first when defenseman Jim Crowley scored his first goal of the season. After Superior’s Logan Isley was sent off for tripping at 15:11, Crowley took a pass from fellow defenseman Jameson Raymond and scored just 10 seconds later to give the Vikings a 1-0 lead.

That lead stood up until midway through the third period. The Vikings killed off five penalties after they took the lead, but Brett Meyers tied the game on an even-strength goal with 9:36 left in the game.

Lawrence was forced to kill off one last penalty after Crowley was whistled for kneeing at the 16:09 mark.

Lawrence goaltender Evan Johnson stopped 35 shots for the Vikings, including two in overtime. Drew Strandberg was forced to make only 12 saves for the Yellowjackets (7-3-1).

This game marks the end of the first half of the season for Lawrence, which doesn’t return to action until it travels to Northland on Jan. 7.

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