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Romeoville, Ill. – It was not enough that Jess Reinhart (Normal, Ill./Bloomington Central Catholic), Alexus Grayer (Washington, Ill./Washington) and Labrenthia Murdock (Round Lake, Ill./Round Lake) all scored in double figures for the Lewis University women's basketball team, in the Flyers 84-77 loss in their home opener on Saturday (Nov. 24) to Central Missouri at Neil Carey Arena.
 
The Flyers fall to 3-1 on the season while the Jennies improve to 5-0.
 
“I was proud of the way we fought,” Lewis head women's basketball coach Lisa Carlsen said. “We have to take care of the basketball and clean up some things.”
 
Reinhart and Grayer led the Flyers with 18 points each. Reinhart went 6-for 12 from the floor, 7-for-10 at the free throw line and pulled down seven rebounds. Grayer went 7-of-11 from the floor, shooting four-of-seven from beyond the arch, and pulled down three rebounds.

Murdock added 10 points, with two made three-pointers and two steals while fellow guard Nikki Nellen (New Berlin, Wis./Pius XI) scored six points, pulled down five rebounds and was an assist shy of her career-high nine assists. 
 
In the first half, Central Missouri pushed the tempo from the tip and forced eight Lewis turnovers. The Jennies extended their lead to 11 points over the Flyers with a layup by Quinnecia Twine at the 7:15 mark.
 
Lewis kicked it into high gear, going on a 16-4 run to close out the last seven minutes of the half to head into the locker room with a 37-36 lead. The Flyers made four three-pointers, one each by Mariyah Henley (Skokie, Ill./Niles North), Alyssa Dengler (Chicago, Ill/Trinity), Grayer and Murdock, while Kristen Itschner (Metamora, Ill./Peoria Notre Dame) and Reinhart hit their free throws.
 
UCM kept feeding forward Nicole Caddell in the second half, scoring 14 of her 24 points in the second half to lead all scorers. Caddell also pulled down 16 rebounds in the game.
 
The squads exchanged two lead changes early in the second half but Central Missouri kept just ahead of Lewis. The Flyers cut the lead to one point twice before the Jennies reached a 11-point lead at 4:02 on a layup by Caddell.
 
UCM's Shelby Winkleman made a layup with seven seconds left in the game for the 84-77 win.
 
Lewis went 11-for-25 (.440) from behind the arch and 20-for-28 (.714) from the free throw line while out rebounding Central Missouri 41-38. UCM shot .485 percent (33-for-68) from the field while only making .500 of their free throws (12-for-24). 

“I have to give Central Missouri some credit,” Carlsen said. “They are a very good basketball team.”
 
Lewis travels to local rival St. Francis (Ill.) on Saturday (Dec. 1) with a 5 PM scheduled tip off at USF's Sullivan Center.