Women's basketball comeback falls short at Wisconsin-La Crosse

LA CROSSE, Wis. - The Simpson women's basketball team came back from 19 down to take a lead late in the game, but Rachel Atchison hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 31 seconds left and secured a steal in the closing seconds to help Wisconsin-La Crosse hold on for a 50-47 win on Sunday in the final game of the Holiday Inn Express Tip-Off Classic.

The Storm (1-1) trailed by 15 at halftime after shooting just 14.3 percent from the field, but chipped away at the lead in the second half until Morgan Mauro's jumper with 3:33 left gave Simpson a 45-44 lead.

A layup by MazKenzie Miller gave the lead back to the Eagles (2-0) before Britney Boland made a pair of free throws to give Simpson a 47-46 lead with 1:55 left.

Atchison hit the go-ahead 3 out of a timeout to give La Crosse a 49-47 lead and her steal on Simpson's next possession sealed the win. Her free throw with 5 seconds left made it final.

Brittany Hedrick scored a team-high 11 points to lead Simpson. Boland came within a rebound of a double-double, finishing with 10 points and nine boards. 

Atchison scored a game-high 15 points on 4 of 11 shooting from beyond the arch.

Up Next

Simpson travels to Mount Pleasant, Iowa on Thursday, Nov. 20 to face Iowa Wesleyan. The game marks the season opener for the Tigers (0-0), who beat Simpson in Indianola last season. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.