Calvin University

UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS, Ohio - Today the Calvin women's basketball team kicked off their season where they fell to the Purple Raiders of Mount Union in the Winking Lizard Tip-Off Tournament hosted by John Carroll.
 
The Knights got off to a hot start in the first quarter where they were led by sophomore Lily Nitz (Caldeonia, Mich./South Christian) and freshman Izzy Wotlinski (Lake Orion, Mich./Lake Orion). Nitz cashed in two three-pointers while Wotlinski chipped in five points to boost Calvin to a 16-9 lead after the first ten minutes. 
 
In the second quarter, it was the Purple Raiders who took control as they outscored the Knights 16-8 and headed into halftime with a slim 25-24 lead. Senior RyAnn Rohrer (Ludington, Mich./Ludington) scored six points in the quarter while fellow seniors Lydia Sall (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) and Chloe Wiegers (Lake Orion, Mich./Lake Orion) each recorded two.
 
Both offenses seemed to find their groove in the third quarter as it was a high scoring affair for both sides. Freshman Leigh Wyman (Blissfield, Mich./Blissfield) scored her first points in a Calvin uniform while Rohrer and Wotlinski brought their point totals to ten apiece.
 
With the score deadlocked at 40-40 the intensity turned up a notch in the fourth quarter. Halfway through the final ten minutes the Purple Raiders went on a 10-2 run to put some distance between the two teams. Back-to-back layups from senior Katelyn LaRue (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) brought the Knights back within striking distance but Mount Union refused to yield and eventually walked away with the 61-55 win over Calvin.
 
Rohrer finished with a team high 12 points while Wotlinski was close behind with 10 points and Nitz finished with 11.
 
COACHES COMMENTS: "Credit to Mount Union," said head coach Mark Christner. "I thought they made the hustle plays down the stretch. The good thing about these weekends is that we are playing good teams, we are one of them, but the response becomes the important thing."
 
UP NEXT: The Knights will be back in action tomorrow Saturday, November 7th when they wrap up their showing at the Winking Lizard Tip-Off Tournament against host school John Carroll at 12 PM.