#2 Crusaders use big 2nd half to down Lady Jackets

--Columbus, Ohio-- The DC Lady Jackets fell at #2 Capital University, 68-46 on Thursday evening in Columbus after hanging close in the first half against the undefeated Crusaders.

Meghann Savard registered a double-double for Defiance with 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting and 11 rebounds, while Lauren Campbell and Meta Gerding added nine and seven points, respectively. Jennifer Lilly led the 10-0 Crusaders with 15 points.

The Lady Jackets could not recover from committing 23 turnovers and hitting just 2-of-10 attempts from three-point range.

Meghann Savard gave DC a 4-2 lead on a lay-up at the 17:30 mark off a Kara Jones assist. Capital answered Savard’s shot with an 8-0 run over the next three minutes. The Crusaders maintained a slim lead throughout the first half until a Lauren Campbell lay-in gave Defiance a 25-24 lead with 49 seconds remaining. CU again responded with a Kate Leopard triple and a Mara Boyer jumper as time expired to take a 27-24 lead into the break.

Capital stunned the Lady Jackets at the beginning of the final period, opening the half with a 14-4 run that put DC down 28-41 at the 14-minute mark. Sarah Bird hit a three-pointer with 11:44 remaining to close the gap to 32-46, but CU then launched a 23-12 run to bury the Lady Jackets and run away with the win.

The Lady Jackets shot just 39% from the floor, hitting 16-of-41 attempts.

Defiance is now 4-6 on the year and will open Heartland Conference play when Transylvania comes to the Weaner Center on Wednesday night for a 7:30 p.m. match up.