Pride drop first conference matchup in 66-64 overtime loss to Benedictine

ATCHISON, Kan. – Skyler Washington scored 18 points to lead Benedictine College to a 66-64 upset of the No. 10 Clarke Pride women's basketball team on Saturday.

The Ravens (17-6 overall, 9-4 Heart) rallied from an 11-point deficit at the half with help from Kennedy Nicholson, who scored 13, as well as Aaliyah Raines' 12 points and Natalie Smaron's near double-double (11 points, nine rebounds).

Taylor Haase scored 13 points off the bench to pace Clarke (21-3, 12-1), while Emma Kelchen and Tina Ubl each added in 12 points. Ubl notched her first double-double of the season after collecting 10 rebounds.

"Tough loss, but it's a great learning experience," said head coach Courtney Boyd. "This group had never been in that situation down the stretch and Benedictine played well. A few defensive adjustments down the stretch and we are in a good spot."

Trailing 35-24 at the half, Benedictine outscored the Pride 26-10 in the third quarter to lead 50-45 heading into the fourth. The Pride clawed their way back by outscoring the Ravens 14-9 in the final frame to knot things up ahead of overtime.

Benedictine controlled the pace in the first few moments of overtime, but the Pride held their own. Down one with 14 seconds to play, Hannah Ambrosy got a contested look at the basket but was unable to finish through the contact. Benedictine came up with the rebound before getting fouled. The Ravens connected on a free throw to go up two before Clarke's final attempt to score. Benedictine's defense swarmed Nicole McDermott, making it nearly impossible to get off a clean shot or pass. McDermott's contested runner fell short of the rim as time expired. 

Clarke shot 37% (20-54) from the field while Benedictine hit 37.3% (25-67). The Ravens scored 32 points in the paint and cashed in on Clarke's turnovers, scoring 12 points off of the Pride's mistakes. Clarke's bench out-scored Benedictine 22-10.  

"We'll learn from this one and will be ready to go on Wednesday," said Boyd.

Up next, the Pride will hit the road for the third-straight game to face off against Grand View University on Wednesday night in their second matchup with the Vikings this season. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. CT from the Dave Sisam Arena in Des Moines.