Women's Basketball lost to one of the top teams in the country on Saturday.
The Ravens lost 71-61 at home to the No. 4 Clarke University Pride, the defending national champions.
The Pride held a 10-point lead after the opening 10 minutes of the game. Clarke connected on 5-of-9 shots from the field in the first quarter, but did the majority of its damage from the free throw line, making 10-12 from the charity stripe.
The Ravens struggled from the field to open the game, shooting just 25% overall and 2-10 from 3-point range.
The Ravens found themselves down by as many as 13 points in the second quarter, but baskets by Riley Rottinghaus and Jennifer Jacobs, then a 3-pointer by Lauryn Dubbert cut the Clarke lead to 28-22. The teams went back-and-forth in the final 4 minutes of the half with the Pride taking a 35-29 lead into the break.
Helping the Ravens was an increased focus on getting the ball in the paint. The home side scored 10 points in the paint in the quarter.
The Ravens continued to chip away at the Pride lead to open the second half, but the Pride showed why they're ranked No. 4 in the country. Back-to-back 3s by Josie Weishaar and Alleigh Kramer cut Clarke lead to 46-43 with 3:45 in the third, but the visitors closed the third quarter on a 10-2 run to take an 11-point lead into the final quarter.
Clarke's run continued in the fourth quarter as the Pride pushed their lead to 16 points with 7 minutes to play. The Ravens fought back once again as Nicholson drained a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to single digits. But the Pride were able to keep the Ravens at arms-length in the final minutes to earn a 10-point win.
Kramer's 10 points were a team-high for the Ravens. Jacobs added 9 and Nicholson scored 8. The Ravens outrebounded the Pride 44-36, but Clarke outshot the Ravens 42.6% to 33.8%.
The Ravens (3-3, 1-1 Heart) will be back on their home court for a 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 21 tilt against Peru State College.
