COLUMBIA - CIU women's basketball had a slim lead slip from their grasp in the waning minutes of Saturday afternoon's battle with Kentucky Christian as CIU came up just short 72-70.

The Rams trailed 23-14 at the end of the first period and by as much as 15 (32-17) at one point in the second quarter. However, after being down 11 at the break, CIU bounced back. The Rams outscored the Knights 18-13 in the third quarter, with seven of those 18 points coming from Bethany Rymer.

Trailing by six entering the fourth (56-50), Mariah Leinbach would find her groove as  the senior helped the Rams storm back to take a 61-62 advantage (4:30). Ultimately, CIU found themselves trailing by four with 49 ticks left on the clock. A well-drawn-up inbounds play resulted in a bucket for Jerchel Geathers-Washington, cutting the lead to just two. The Rams were granted one last possession down 72-70 but were unable to capitalize.

The Rams saw balanced scoring Saturday night as Rymer (14 points), Leinbach (13 points), Jessica North (ten points), and Geathers-Washington (11 points) all scored in double-figures.

Irene Were made her presence known on both ends of the court, scoring eight points and pulling down a season-high 14 rebounds.

Up Next: CIU is back at home Monday, Feb. 10, to face Brenau at 5:30 p.m.