FORT WAYNE, Ind. – On Saturday afternoon the University of Saint Francis Lady Cougars (7-4; 3-1 Crossroads) traveled to Winona Lake, Indiana to take on the RV Grace College Lancers (8-1; 4-0 Crossroads) but suffered their first conference loss of the season as they fell 64-51.

After a big victory Wednesday night against Goshen, the Lady Cougars were faced with the task of overtaking a Lancers team undefeated and tied for first in the Crossroads League.

Opening the game, the Lady Cougars and Lancers got out to a back-and-forth battle to begin before Grace scored four unanswered points to take a 10-6 lead. They grew their lead to five points before the first quarter ended with Saint Francis trailing 14-9.

Scoring was scarce in the opening minutes of the second quarter as the Lady Cougars scored the first four points in the frame in over five minutes to cut the deficit to one. Then a layup by sophomore guard Emily Parrett gave Saint Francis the lead as they scored six unanswered points themselves.

The remainder of the first half was a seesaw battle before a late foul allowed the Lancers to shoot a couple of free throws which were both made to give Grace their five-point lead back as the game went to halftime with the Lady Cougars trailing 27-22.

Heading into the second half, the deficit grew to 10 points for the Lady Cougars as the Lancers showed why they're receiving votes. Saint Francis clawed back to close the deficit to four points, but Grace kept pressing and took a 44-36 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Then in the fourth, the Lancers put the game away taking as big as a 18-point lead in the final minutes as the Lady Cougars' win streak of three games is snapped.

Throughout the game, the Lady Cougars shot 37 percent from the floor, 40 percent from beyond the three-point line, and 60 percent from the free throw line. Emily Parrett was the lead scorer for the Lady Cougars totaling 19 points, and also recorded six rebounds.

The Lady Cougars resume play next Saturday afternoon when they return home to Hutzell Athletic Center to take on the Spring Arbor University Cougars (4-3; 0-3 Crossroads) beginning at 1:00 pm.

Cougar fans, stay updated with all events and recaps with USF Athletics by visiting Saintfranciscougars.com or by downloading the Saint Francis Cougars app.