HIGH SCORING CONTEST SEES #18 RIO GRANDE OUTLAST IU SOUTHEAST 100-96

RIO GRANDE, OH – The IU Southeast women's basketball team fell to No. 18 Rio Grande 100-96 in a game that saw five different players score at least 24 points.

Leah Miller had a career-high 31 points on 10-19 shooting, including 7-9 from the three-point line. Emmy Ralph scored 24 points and grabbed a team-high nine rebounds. Lauren Lambdin also added 24 points in the contest.

IU Southeast (6-11, 2-6 RSC) jumped out to an early 13-8 lead in the first quarter. After a Rio Grande layup cut the lead to three, the Grenadiers answered with a 9-0 run to take a 22-10 advantage. A Lauren Lambdin jumper gave IU Southeast a 26-14 lead later in the first, but Rio Grande closed the quarter on an 11-2 run to cut the IU Southeast lead to three at 28-25.

Rio Grande (17-1, 6-0 RSC) opened the second quarter with nine straight points to take a 34-28 lead. The teams traded baskets for much of the quarter as the score stayed within two possessions for the entirety of the second period. The Grenadiers battled back to tie the game twice late in the second, but a Rio Grande layup gave the RedStorm a 51-49 edge at the half.

IU Southeast managed to tie the game at 55-55 early in the third quarter on two Leah Miller free throws. After several back-and-forth possessions, IU Southeast took a 65-60 lead on back-to-back three pointers by Leah Miller and Brynna Blackburn.

Not to be outdone, Rio Grande responded with a 7-0 run to take the lead back at 67-65. The string of runs continued as IU Southeast rattled off nine straight points to take the lead back at 74-67. The Grenadiers led 78-72 after three quarters.

A 9-2 run to open the fourth gave Rio Grande the lead. The Grenadiers, as they had all game, responded with four straight points to take the lead right back at 84-81. This would be the last lead the Grenadiers held in the contest as Rio Grande scored seven straight points to take an 88-84 lead.

The Grenadiers fought to keep the game within one possession, but Rio Grande had an answer for every IU Southeast basket down the stretch. Leah Miller hit a late three to give the Grenadier a glimmer of hope, but ultimately it was not enough as Rio Grande pulled out the 100-96 victory.

Both teams shot above 50 percent from the field in the high-scoring affair. The Grenadiers shot 50.7 percent from the field and hit 10 of their 22 three-point attempts. IU Southeast also went 16-20 from the free-throw line. The difference in the game was points off turnovers, as Rio Grande managed to turn 19 IU Southeast turnovers into 27 points.

IU Southeast returns to action on Thursday at Ohio Christian University.