LIVONIA, Mich. – Madonna University Crusaders women's basketball team were in a dogfight all night long with the Gray Wolves. Both teams were able to buckle up on the defensive side of the ball with the three-point shot being the difference in the end in the Gray Wolves favor. In the end, Lourdes prevailed with a 46-42 victory.

The Crusaders record is now 3-17 and 1-11 in the conference, while the Gray Wolves record improves to 5-15 and 4-9 in conference play.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Both teams came out shooting the ball on consecutive possessions as there were four lead changes in the first five minutes of play. Paige Boden started out the scoring for the Crusaders as she hit a three from the top of the arc and Emily Pendred was able to get a layup off of a nice pass from Victoria Guardiola gave MU a quick 7-4 lead but Lourdes came roaring back as they put up nine straight points. Madonna put up a couple of layups to bring them within two at the quarter break. Leading the Crusaders in the quarter was Boden. 
• Lourdes kept hot to start the second with a 10-2 run off a 3-point basket and a couple of free throws but that was it for the Gray Wolves for a total of 11 and a half minutes as they were held scoreless going including part of the third quarter. The Crusaders took this opportunity down 10 points and capitalized off Lourdes turnovers off of layups and jump shots to get within three at the half. Leading the Crusaders was Pendred.
• With Lourdes still in their scoring drought, the Crusaders came out firing as Guardiola tied the game, and baskets from Sydney Brown, Pendred and Boden led to a six-point lead. That lead grew to ten after baskets from Guardiola, Brown and Megan Aho, which was the biggest lead of the night for the Crusaders. An 8-0 run at the end of the quarter gave MU only a two-point differential at the break. Leading the Crusaders was Guardiola.
• In the fourth quarter alone there were a total of five lead changes with the final one coming at the 6:44 mark and the Gray Wolves taking the lead for good. Madonna was able to get with three with 10 seconds remaining but was not able to get the ball back with enough time for the final shot. The Crusaders were led in the quarter by four players.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• 23: Boden tallied 11 points and tacked on five rebounds and four blocks.
• 47: The Crusaders finished with 47 rebounds including 19 offensive and 28 defensive rebounds, leading the Crusaders was Pendred with 14 rebounds. While the Gray Wolves also recorded 50 rebounds including 13 offensive and 37 defensive and were led by Mary Liedel with 8 rebounds.
• 9:  The Blue and Gold created nine turnovers from steals on the night with Aho and Guardiola both with four steals.
• 30: The Blue and Gold were able to hit the paint as they tallied 30 of their 42 points in the paint as opposed to the Gray Wolves 14.

MILESTONE WATCH:

• Boden currently sits at second in blocks in a season with 53 and is five blocks away from the top spot.

UP NEXT:

• The Crusaders will head onto the road for the first game of a three-game road trip when they travel to Lima, Ohio to take on the Racers of Northwestern Ohio on Saturday, Jan. 25 with a 1 PM tipoff.
• Live coverage if available will be posted to mucrusaders.com

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