River Forest, Ill.- The Concordia University Chicago women's basketball team faced off at home against Aurora University this evening in a Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference matchup. CUC looked to push Aurora out of the final playoff spot with a win against the Spartans. In the first half, the Cougars had a rough time knocking down shots, which plagued them with a 19-point deficit. CUC fought back and would eventually cut the Aurora lead to just three. Aurora fended off the resurgence, to fend off the Cougars by a final score of 82-73.
 
Taylor Jacobsen led the Cougars (15-5; 11-4 NACC) with 14 points. Courtney Lofink finished with a game high six assists and three steals. As a team CUC shot 36 percent, and got out rebounded by Aurora (10-10; 8-7 NACC) 52-36. Five players finished in double figures for Aurora, led by Adriana Ramirez with 18 points and 17 rebounds. On the night the Spartans shot 46 percent as a team.
 
AU battled early with the Cougar's fast paced offense and kept an 11-9 lead halfway through the first quarter. An early run for the Spartans, forced Concordia-Chicago to call a timeout. The Cougars trailed 19-11 and were looking for any type of spark. Aurora was able to hold off any type of surge from CUC and led 29-14 going into the second quarter.
 
During the second quarter, the Cougars still could not find their groove offensively. Meanwhile the Spartans stayed consistent from the field. Concordia-Chicago's shooting woes were a major reason why Aurora's lead reached as many as 21. The Spartans went into the halftime break up 44-28.
 
Maddie Vojacek lit a fire under the Cougars out of halftime with five straight points and a steal. CUC turned up the pressure and the physicality and shrunk the lead from nineteen to six with 5:07 left in the quarter. T. Jacobsen cut the lead in half again to 49-46 with two consecutive drives to the basket, kicking it to her open teammates for layups. The Spartans were able to fend off the Cougar run and held a 59-52 lead going into the fourth quarter.
 
Early in the fourth, Aurora hit first and pushed the lead back to 63-52. Annika Rae and Erin Jacobsen hit big-time threes to make the score 63-60. Neither team backed down from beyond the arc, and both teams traded threes on several possessions. With 3:05 left the Spartans held a 75-65 advantage that they would not relinquish, taking down the Cougars 82-73.
 
Concordia-Chicago looks to bounce back this Saturday, February 3^rd, at Lakeland University in another NACC matchup. Opening tip is set for 4:15pm.