Turnovers prove costly as Tigers top RedStorm

Rio Grande Sports Information
     FORT WAYNE, Ind. - A large portion of the success enjoyed by the University of Rio Grande women's basketball team this season stemmed from its ability to make the opposition pay for their mistakes.
     Ironically, the same set of circumstances proved to be the RedStorm's undoing.
     Head coach David Smalley's squad committed 20 turnovers which produced 28 points for Stillman (Ala.) College and the Tigers rallied from a 13-point second quarter deficit for an 83-79 triumph, Friday afternoon, in the 2025 NAIA Women's Basketball National Championship First Round, presented by Ballogy, at the Hutzell Athletic Center on the campus of the University of Saint Francis.
     Rio Grande, the No. 6 seed in the Liston Quadrant of the 64-team tourney, finished 26-6 with the loss.
     Stillman, which posted its first-ever national tournament victory, improved to 26-5 with the win and advanced to Saturday's Second Round where it will face 14th-seeded Indiana Tech, which upset the third-seeded and host Cougars in Friday's opening game.
     Rio Grande led 20-15 at the close of the opening quarter and enjoyed its largest lead of the day, 36-23, after a layup by junior Marlee Grinstead (Albany, OH) with 3:28 left in the first half.
     The RedStorm's advantage settled at 10 points, 40-30, by the halftime intermission, but then evaporated altogether amidst a disastrous third quarter.
     Rio hit three of its seven shots in the period, but had seven turnovers - by seven different players - as the Lady Tigers went 11-for-18 from the floor (61.1%) over the same stretch and transformed the 10-point deficit at the break into a nine-point lead, 52-43, following a layup by Lelia Henderson with 2:36 remaining in the period.
     The seven third quarter Rio turnovers produced 10 points for Stillman, which took a 54-50 lead into the final period.
     The RedStorm tied the game less than a minute into the fourth quarter on a pair of free throws by senior Harlei Antritt (Newark, OH) and eventually regained the lead, 60-58, after two free throws by senior Lexi Woods (Waverly, OH) with 5:52 left to play.
     Rio still had the lead, 64-63, after a layup by Woods with 4:13 remaining, but Stillman's Farrah Pearson drilled a three-pointer on her team's ensuing possession and the Tigers never trailed again.
     Pearson's trifecta started an 8-0 Stillman run which produced a seven-point lead with just over two minutes left and Rio Grande got no closer than two, 81-79, after a layup by freshman Payton Johnson (Peebles, OH) with only six seconds left.
     The RedStorm fouled Raena Suggs immediately and she responded by nailing two free throws with five seconds remaining to seal the victory.
     Rio Grande hit on 54 percent of its shots overall (26-for-48) and also enjoyed a 32-20 edge in rebounding, but was undone by the turnovers.
     Woods and Antritt led the RedStorm with 15 points each, while senior Kaylee Darnell (Wheelersburg, OH) had 14 and freshman Jasmine Jordan (Ashland, KY) finished with 10.
     Jordan shared team rebounding honors with senior Azyiah Williams (Ripley, WV) after both had six carems each. Williams also had three assists and Darnell had two steals.
     Stillman shot 44 percent overall (27-for-61) and just under 83 percent at the foul line (24-for-29).
     Jamariah Turner led the Tigers with 22 points, six rebounds and four steals. Pearson had 17 points in the win, while Suggs netted 13 and Jaida Minter tallied 11 points and four assists.