Grand Rapids, Mich. – The AQ women's basketball side returned to the hardwood this afternoon (Jan. 28) to take on the Tigers of Grace Christian. AQ entered the game on a four-game skid and were looking to get back in win column. The Saints did just that after holding a comfortable lead for a majority of the game. Aquinas won the game by a score of 67-54.

AQ improves to 9-13 on the season while the Tigers fall to 9-8.

Aquinas got the scoring started with a jumper from Emily Cline and a three from Mauriya Barnes. A three ball from Eliza Brown a couple possessions later gave the home side an 8-0 run to start the game. Grace Christian responded with a jumper, but another three from Brown had the Saints out in front by nine with 5:45 left in the first.

After a bit of a scoring drought, AQ got back in the scoring column to extend its lead to 12. GCU went on a run of its own, but AQ responded back and ended the first quarter with a 20-8 lead.

The Saints got out to a hot start in the second quarter following a brief intermission. A quick 7-3 run put AQ in the driver's seat with a 16-point advantage early in the second quarter. After a bit of back-and-forth, AQ nailed back-to-back threes from Delaney Bailey and Brighton Miller to take its first 20-point lead of the game.

Bailey went on a bit of a run, scoring the next five points for the Saints. Those five points would be the final points of the half for the home side as both teams entered the locker rooms for half time with AQ leading 39-20.

A defensive battle ensued to start the second half with neither sides able to convert many shots. With AQ leading 43-27 with just under five minutes to play. Isabel Reemsnyder and JaKarri Alven scored a pair of layups on consecutive possessions to heat up the offense and retake a 20-point advantage.

Following several trips to the charity stripe, Aquinas built its lead to 23 with just 40 seconds left to play in the third. That 23-point lead was AQ's largest lead of the game. Grace Christian ended the quarter with a free throw, but remained in a deep, 22-point hole as the quarter came to a close.

However, Grace Christian began to rally back in the fourth quarter. The Tigers went on a 13-0 run to start the quarter, managing to hold the Saints scoreless for the first four minutes of the fourth. Alven responded and scored a quick bucket after a Cline steal to retake a double-digit lead with six minutes left to play.

Both sides went back-and-forth until Cline scored six consecutive points to establish AQ with a comfortable 15-points lead with three-and-a-half minutes to play. With 2:42 left on the clock, Reemsnyder scored her second bucket of the game off of a Brynn Reams assist, taking a 65-47 lead.

Reams scored the last points of the game for AQ a few seconds later as the clock eventually wound down to zero. Aquinas got back in the win column with the 67-54 victory.

Aquinas held the advantage in most statistical categories, leading in field goal percentage (35.9-35.4), three-point percentage (23.1-21.1), free throw percentage (75.0-72.7), rebounds (45-32), assists (15-9), and steal (12-6). Both teams ended the matchup with three blocks.

Alven ended the game with a team-high 14 points on the day. She went 6-10 from the field and scored both her free throws to go along with her two rebounds and assist.

Cline had a great game as she posted the first double-double of her career. She scored 11 points on 4-6 shooting from the field and 3-4 shooting from the free throw line. She racked up a career-high 11 rebounds this afternoon while also adding a team-high four assists and two steals during the game.

In total, 11 different Saints recorded points in the scoring column.

The Saints wrap up their three-game homestand this Wednesday (Feb. 1) with an evening matchup against Lawrence Tech. The game is set to tipoff at 5:30 PM.