Tigers' Late Game Rally Comes Up Short in the Jersey Mike's Challenge

SANTA CLARITA, Calif. – The ONU women's basketball team resumed play after a two-week break from the action. The Tigers traveled to Santa Clarita, California, to take part in the Jersey Mike's Classic hosted by The Master's University. In their first game of the tournament, the Tigers took on the undefeated host school, who entered play with a perfect 13-0 record. ONU entered the game with an 11-3 record and a #20 NAIA Division II ranking.

The game opened by showing that the teams were closely matched as the two sides exchanged the lead multiple times in the first quarter. Both teams built leads as high as four in the period, with ONU ultimately closing out the quarter with a 23-20 advantage. The Master's would only allow the Tigers to maintain the edge for a short time as the two continued to exchange the lead early in the second quarter. The Mustangs would go on to take a permanent halftime lead at the 8:10 mark, building a lead as high as 12 points, before ultimately closing out the half with a 47-37 advantage. The Tigers were led in the first half by the scoring of Kayla Ross (SR/Elgin, Ill.) and Sammy Stejskal (SR/Arlington Heights, Ill.), who had eight and seven points, respectively.

The Mustangs continued to build on their double-digit lead in the second half as they went on an 11-0 run to start the half. The Master's would build a lead to as high as 23 in the third quarter before ultimately ending the period up 74-54. The Tigers would make a run in the fourth quarter closing the gap to end the game. Ultimately, the Mustangs would hold on to win the game 90-77. Zanna Myers (SO/Monticello, Ill.) would lead all ONU scorers with 15 points, going five-for-nine on her three-point attempts. Ross would go on to finish the game with 12 points and adding five assists to her stat line.

GAME VITALS

Score: Olivet Nazarene – 77 | The Mater's - 90

Records: Olivet Nazarene – 11-4 | The Master's – 14-0

Location: The Master's University | Santa Clarita, Calif. | The MacArthur Center | Jersey Mike's Classic

STAT TRACKER

• Zanna Myers: 15 points, five steals, three assists
• Kayla Ross: 12 points, five assists, three rebounds, two steals, two blocks
• Sammy Stejskal: 11 points, two steals, twos assists, two rebounds
• Kaitlyn Clark (SO/Orting, Wash.): Eight points, six rebounds
• Karina Smits (SO/Pewaukee, Wis.): Eights points, one steal

WHAT'S NEXT?

The Tigers will continue to play in the Jersey Mike's Classic on Monday, December 30th. ONU will play Westmont College at 3:00 PM CST as they wrap-up their participation in the classic.