Box Score ST. LOUIS, Miss. – This afternoon Women's Basketball traveled to St. Louis, Mo. to face conference opponent Fontbonne University in their first meeting of the season. Strong starts have become a bit of a trademark for the Panthers over the past couple of games, and today's contest was no different. Principia found an offensive rhythm early, led by senior captain
Kara Johnson, and at the end of the first quarter the Panthers had a 17-12 lead. Unfortunately, stagnant offense and some defensive lapses in the 2
nd quarter allowed the Griffins to fight back into the game, taking a double-digit lead before a critical three point bucket from sophomore shooting guard
Megan Selby cut the Panther deficit to nine before half time.
Unfortunately the 3
rd quarter was more of the same, and coupled with some foul trouble proved to be too much for the Panthers to overcome to secure the victory. The Griffin lead grew to over 20 points before the end of the 3
rd, and while the Panthers won the 4
th quarter (led in large part by Johnson and freshman center
Sophia Hathaway) it wasn't enough to combat the 2
nd and 3
rd quarter struggles. Principia had three Panthers in double digits tonight, including Selby with 12 points and a 50% field goal percentage. Hathaway had 17 points and 7 boards despite limited minutes, and Johnson turned in yet another game-high performance with 25 points, 8 rebounds, and a season-high 8 assists.
The Panthers are back in action at home this coming Tuesday, January 19
th, where they will host the Westminster College Blue Jays. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 pm.
