INDEPENDENCE, Kan. - The Independence Women’s Basketball team fell just short in their pursuit of back to back wins, as a couple missed opportunities late led to a 65-62 loss to Fort Hays Tech Northwest on Wednesday night. 

Looking for the season sweep of the Tigers, the Lady Pirates got off to a slow start, as they made their first field goal at the 2:14 mark of the first quarter. After seeing the first one go through, Indy rattled off a 9-0 run in the final two minutes to tie the score at the end of the first quarter.

A back and forth second quarter saw the Lady Pirates take their first lead at the six minute mark, but a 6-2 run to close at the half by the Tigers gave them a slight one point advantage. 

The Lady Pirates came out clicking in the second half, turning a one point deficit into a 10-point lead within the first five minutes of the third quarter. The second five minutes of quarter number three was all Tigers, as they responded with a 14-5 run of their own to trim the double digit deficit down to one. 

In the fourth quarter the Tigers quickly jumped out front thanks to a Marta Rodriguez three point shot that quickly had the Pirates playing from behind. The three point shots would continue to fall for the Tigers as their third of the quarter would push their lead to eight with just over three minutes to play. Indy was quickly able to answer with four free throws followed by a bucket from Jade Oliney to cut the lead back down to two. Danaiya Stillwell-Smith would score the final two of her 16 points on a jump shot late to cut the lead to one at 63-62. 

The Lady Pirates were unable to convert down the stretch as the Tigers were unable to put the game away on the offensive end leaving the door open multiple times for Indy to tie or take the lead. Ultimately a three point attempt at the buzzer to tie from Flutra Mehmeti fell short as the Pirates fell by three. 

Indy was dominant on the glass outrebounding the Tigers 53-38, but the Tigers ended the night shooting the ball at a better clip, besting Indy from the field and from deep. 

Mimi White finished with a game high 17 points, while Stillwell-Smith notched another double-double with her 16 points and game high 15 rebounds. Maddie Moran had a nice game off the bench for the Lady Pirates as she finished with nine points and four rebounds. 

The loss moves Indy into a three way tie for one of the final two playoff spots, as they now gear up for a road test on Saturday as they travel to Garden City to take on the Broncbusters. The Lady Pirates fell to Garden City 80-32 back on December 6th.