Fourth Quarter Propels Lakers Past Fighting Saints

CHICAGO – Roosevelt went on a critical 14-2 run late in the game to pull away for a 68-61 victory over Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference rival St. Francis on Sunday afternoon at the Goodman Center.

The hard-fought contest was a one-score affair for much of the day with the lead changing hands 15 times and being tied at nine other points. The Lakers (7-9, 5-3 CCAC) fell behind by four with 5:39 remaining, then held the Fighting Saints to just two field goals the rest of the way. Meanwhile, the offense heated up courtesy of some old-fashioned hard work and executing the details.

Ella Pritchard jumped in front of a pass and easily soared down the floor to tie the game at 56, and a minute later, Marie Outlay collected a missed shot and put it back to give Roosevelt a three-point advantage. Pritchard added free throws following a pair of steals on the defensive end while trying to finish through contact then Jayla Turchin threaded a pass perfectly through the defense for another Pritchard layup.

Pritchard, Turchin and Jalyssa Carrasco all scored six points in the fourth quarter as the Lakers shot 50 percent from the floor in the final 10 minutes. Turchin also made her presence known around the paint with six rebounds in the fourth quarter, leaving one shy of a double-double in the game. The junior forward led the Lakers with 22 points in the game on 10 of 19 shooting, and also added two steals and two key assists.

In the first quarter, Roosevelt went on a 10-0 run to take an early seven-point lead behind seven first-quarter points from Turchin. Kristen Keys had five in the opening 10 minutes, including the 3-pointer that punctuated the run. Turchin added seven more points in the second quarter to give the Lakers a two-point lead at halftime before Outlay took over with seven points in the third quarter.

Outlay finished with 11 points and Pritchard chipped in 12 points and six rebounds in the win for the Lakers. Roosevelt is now off to its best start in conference play in six years and have won six of its last eight games overall.

The Lakers will try to extend their winning ways Thursday in Gary, Ind. at 5:30 p.m. against Indiana Northwest in a contest that was pushed back a day due to the extreme cold moving into the area