No. 22 Women's Basketball dropped its Heart of America Conference opener Wednesday night in the Ralph Nolan Gym, losing to the Missouri Valley Vikings 55-54.

The Ravens held a 10-point advantage with 3:28 left to play in the game, but turnovers and empty possessions allowed the Vikings to get back into the game. Missouri Valley's Shanelle Tolley made a runner in the paint to push the Vikings in front with two seconds left on the clock to earn the win. The Ravens were unable to get a shot off on a last-second inbounds play.

The Ravens struggled on the offensive end in the second half, shooting 19.2 percent from the field and 10 percent from 3-point range. They shot 29.5 percent from the field over the course of the game. The Vikings were slightly better, shooting 36.5 percent from the field and 26.3 percent from 3.

Kayla Staley had a game-high 13 points for the Ravens, and also pulled down eight rebounds. The Ravens outrebounded the Vikings 42-39 in the game. They also had 14 turnovers, while forcing 16 Vikings turnovers.

The Ravens used a 9-0 run to take a 36-28 lead into halftime after holding a 16-14 lead after one quarter of play. The outside shot played a big part in the halftime lead as the Ravens shot 7-of-14 from behind the arc. The Ravens also grabbed 23 rebounds in the first half, compared to 14 for the Vikings.

The first half was a back-and-forth battle as the teams traded leads 14 times. The Ravens were led in scoring in the first half by Brynn Maul, Natalie Smaron and Zeynep Canbaz, with all three scoring 6 points in the first 20 minutes.

Neither team shot well in the third quarter as the Ravens scored 9 and the Vikings managed 7 points. The Ravens entered the fourth quarter up 45-35 and held the advantage until the final ticks on the clock.

The Ravens (3-2, 0-1 Heart) return to action Saturday, Nov. 17 against Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.