ONU's Comeback Falls Short Against Saint Xavier

Bourbonnais, Ill. – ONU women's basketball squared off against Saint Xavier in a match-up of two NAIA Top 25 teams on Wednesday night. Olivet entered the game with a nine and one record, riding an eight-game winning streak, and possessing a rank of 19th in the NAIA. Saint Xavier entered the game with an eight and one record, and rank of 12. Both teams held perfect records in Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference contests, with both sides winning five conference games so far this season. The winner of the competition would remain unbeaten in conference play and hold a half a game first-place lead in the CCAC standings.

The Tigers knew that they were in for a tough game, as demonstrated by statements made by Sammy Stejskal (SR/Arlington Heights, Ill.) and Katie Settingsgaard (SR/Oak Creek, Wis.) before the game. Stejskal stated, "This will be a tough game. We are not going to underestimate the team at all. Saint Xavier has been one of the toughest teams we have played during my time at ONU. With how well we have been playing this season, I know tonight will be a great competition. It helps that we are playing at McHie. We love playing here." Settingsgaard added, "Saint Xavier is a sound team, and they are coached well. It will be a tough game tonight, but we are excited to rise to the occasion."

Saint Xavier demonstrated that the two seniors were accurate in their assessment of the Cougars. SXU started the game fast, jumping out to an early six to nothing lead. Olivet did not get on the board until Caroline Boehne (SO/Hoffman, Ill.) made a lay-up at the 8:25 mark in the first period. The Courgars then proceeded to maintain the lead throughout the first quarter, building an advantage as high as six, before ultimately closing out the period with a 27-24 advantage.

The second quarter saw SXU continue to build their lead as they held a 32-24 advantage a minute and a half into the period. Zanna Myers (SO/Monticello, Ill.) hit a three nearly three minutes into the period to give the Tigers their first points of the second. Both teams struggled with holding the ball in the period as the Tigers had seven turnovers, and the Cougars had six. Ultimately, ONU was unable to close the margin in the quarter, going into the locker room at the half down 59-42.

To start the second half, the Tigers scored seven unanswered points to close the deficit to 10 within the first two minutes of play. However, the Tigers would be unable to cut the deficit to single digits during the period as Saint Xavier shot 50% for the quarter, including 33% shooting from behind the arc. Ultimately the third ended with the Tigers trailing 85-70 with one period left to play.

As is the custom of ONU Tigerball, the team was up to the challenge of remaining in the contest. Olivet continued to pressure the Cougars, and battle hard for rebounds and steals throughout the entirety of the fourth. Their relentless play, led by ten points and two assists from Kayla Ross (SR/Elgin, Ill.), appeared as though it had the potential for a comeback. The thought of putting together a come from behind win became even more attainable when Myers hit a three with 1:44 left to play to pull the Tigers within seven of tying the game. However, this would be the closest ONU would get to catching the Cougars as the game would finish with Saint Xavier winning by a score of 109 to 101.

GAME VITALS

Score: Olivet Nazarene – 101 | St. Xavier – 109

Records: Olivet Nazarene – 9-2 (5-1 CCAC) | St. Xavier – 9-1 (6-0 CCAC)

Location: Olivet Nazarene University | Bourbonnais, Ill. | McHie Arena

STAT TRACKER

• Kayla Ross: 24 points, four steals, four rebounds, three assists
• Kennedy Johnson (SO/Romulus, Mich.): 10 points, four assists, two steals
• Zanna Myers: Nine points, five rebounds, two assists
• Karina Smits (SO/Pewaukee, Wis.): Nine points, three steals
• Sammy Stejskal: Nine points, three rebounds

NEWS AND NOTES

Kayla Ross's steal with 2:34 left in the first quarter gave her 300 steals for her career. Her four steals in the game give her a total of 303 total steals for her career.

WHAT'S NEXT?

The Tigers will play Trinity Christian College on Saturday, December 7th. The game will be played in McHie Arena at 1:00 PM CST.