River Forest, Ill. – Saturday was a day for excitement in Geiseman Gymnasium as both the women's and men's basketball teams of Concordia University Chicago took on Marian University. The women's team (6-6, 5-2 NACC) started things off, looking to keep their six-game conference win streak alive after a long period of no games due to health and safety protocols. However, the Sabres (3-10, 1-6 NACC) came ready to play spoiler and defeated the Cougars 67-62 in a lengthy back-and-forth battle. 

Inside the Box:

• Freshman Alisyn MacGregor (Loves Park, Ill.) led CUC in scoring with an impressive 17-point performance. She also continued to be a presence on the boards, leading the team with 15 rebounds.

• Junior Bailey Steinkamp (Cary, Ill.) and Jaylene Wade (Lansing, Ill.) both followed with seven rebounds of their own. Wade also led the team with five assists.

• Eight Cougars were able to produce points on the afternoon. They were also 61.5% effective from the freethrow line.

It was a slow start for both teams offensively, with Marian taking just a 10-7 lead after the first quarter. This is where CUC had to make the adjustments to catch the Sabres off guard, and they were able to capitalize on this. Senior Ava Gardner (Park Ridge, Ill.) and junior Madelyn McGrath (Oak Lawn, Ill.) were both huge playmakers in the second quarter and helped keep it just a four point game at the half.

Out of the break, Steinkamp and Wade decided to turn up the heat and create some momentum for the Cougars. This included a long, down-the-court pass from Wade and a couple of points from Steinkamp.

The pair were not the only ones wanting to put up a fight. Junior Kayla Jackson (Worth, Ill.) entered the game and knocked down a three to keep the Cougars in it. As both teams continued to battle back and forth, the team was finally able to tie things up at 62 with only a minute remaining in the game. 

Unfortunately, this was as close as the Cougars would get, eventually falling 67-62. 

They'll look to spark up a new winning streak beginning with a home battle against Aurora University this Tuesday, Jan. 18, at 7p.m. Coverage of that game and all others can be found at cucougars.com/coverage.