Women's Basketball falls at Transylvania

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Coming off a big win over rival Bluffton on Wednesday evening, the Defiance College women's basketball team made the southern trip to Transylvania for Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference action on Saturday. The strong Pioneer side topped the Yellow Jackets 75-46 in the contest.

A potent Pioneer offense quickly pressured the Yellow Jackets as the hosts tallied 29 points in the first ten minutes of play. A back-and-forth second quarter saw Defiance edged by just one point as Lexie Sparks (Trenton/Kings) tallied nine of her team-high 13 points.

After the halftime break, the Yellow Jackets posted their highest-scoring quarter behind a 46.2 shooting percentage. Ultimately, the Transy offense proved powerful as the hosts pushed the lead to just under thirty points.

"This was a learning experience for us," summarized Head Coach Allan King, Jr. "They are a program where we want to be. We got an up-close look at what we need to do to compete with them on a yearly basis in the future."

As a team, DC shot 32.1 percent from the floor in the affair. Closely following Sparks, Taylor Steinbrunner (Beavercreek/Beavercreek) recorded 11 points, her second consecutive double-digit performance. The freshman duo's impact was not lost upon the coaching staff. "Taylor and Lexie did a good job of attacking them defensively in the second half," noted King.

Defensively, Nysha Speed (Sterling Heights, Mich./L'Anse Creuse North) grabbed a team-best six boards for the Purple and Gold. "Nysha really handled their pressure and gave great effort throughout," noted King of the sophomore. As a team, the Yellow Jackets forced TU into 14 turnovers throughout the afternoon.

The defeat brings Defiance's record to 4-9 on the season and a 3-3 mark in HCAC play. DC will return to action on Wednesday, Jan. 15, as they travel to Manchester for a 7:30 pm tip.