February 19, 2022 | by Nate Croswell

LEAD

LINCOLN, Ill. -- The Sabercats fought valiantly but ultimately fell to Lincoln Christian 64-58.

Callie Morrison scored 27 points and Katelyn Morrison tallied 21 points in the loss.

OVERVIEW

• Result: Maranatha 58-64 Lincoln Christian
• Venue: Gaston Arena, Lincoln Christian University
• Location: Lincoln, Ill.
• Attendance: -
• Records: MBU (5-16), LCU (9-13) 

STORY 

The Red Lions controlled the game from early on by jumping out to a 12-6 lead, but the Sabercats held them to just three points the rest of the first quarter to hold close to a 15-12 deficit. The second quarter was similar to the first as Lincoln flew out to a huge 15-point lead within five minutes, but Callie Morrison (seven points) and Katelyn Morrison (eight points) helped the Sabercats battle back to a 33-29 deficit at the break.

The third quarter once again proved to be a struggle for Maranatha as Lincoln came back with a strong offensive approach that propelled them to a 17-point lead at one point in the quarter. By the buzzer, the Red Lions led the game 52-36.

But Maranatha fought hard in the final stretch, outscoring Lincoln 22-12 in the final quarter. Katelyn scored 10 of her 21 points in the final quarter, fueling the comeback opportunity. Callie also contributed with eight points, accounting for 18 of the Sabercats 22 points in the fourth. But the Red Lions' defense prevented just enough scoring from the Maranatha offense to hold off the comeback, and the Sabercats fell by a score of 64-58.

--

Maranatha Starters: 3- C. Morrison, 13- Teachout, 20- Rogers, 25- K. Morrison, 32- J. Brown // Lincoln Christian starters: 2- Powell-Goodma, 13- Yanko, 20- Rosenbery, 32- Smith, 40- Hall

STATS

• Callie: 27 PTS, 8 REB, 4 AST, 3 STL, 2 BLK
• Katelyn: 21 PTS, 2 REB, 2 STL
• MBU: 38.6 FG%
• Last time: Lincoln Christian defeated Maranatha 64-54 on January 25
• Series: Maranatha leads the all-time series against Lincoln Christian 31-14 

OPPONENTS

• Lincoln Christian competes in the Continental Athletic Conference (NAIA)
• Lincoln Christian competes also in the NCCAA DI and used to compete with Maranatha in the NCCAA DII Midwest region

NEXT

The Sabercats begin the NCCAA DII North Region tournament against Central Christian College on Thursday at 4:00 p.m. Follow at mbusabercats.com/schedule.