LEAD

APPLETON, Wis. -- Three nights after a season-opening win, the Sabercats did an "about-face" at Lawrence University.

Despite a commendable performance against a historically difficult opponent, the Sabercats were handed a 65-53 loss and move to 1-1 on the season.

OVERVIEW

• Result: Maranatha 53-65 Lawrence
• Venue: Alexander Gymnasium, Lawrence University
• Location: Appleton, Wis.
• Attendance: 59
• Records: MBU (1-1), LU (4-2)

STORY

The first quarter was all about Maranatha, as the Sabercats flew out to a 13-2 lead thanks to the dual efforts of Callie Morrison and Kelsey Johnson. Lawrence had a weak answer, but at the end of the opening 10 minutes, the Sabercats had a 20-10 lead thanks to Morrison's 11-point performance in the opening act.

But the second quarter was a complete turnaround from the first. It was like a tennis match, as the Vikings returned the Sabercats' opening statement with a 20-8 run of their own in the second quarter. MBU went on just 3-11 shooting and turned the ball over 12 times. All in all, the Vikings had 21 shots from the field and Kenya Earl logged 10 points for the hosts to turn the game around heading into the locker room. After a back-and-forth opening half, it was MBU 28-30 LU.

Bad news for MBU: the third quarter was almost exactly like the second, as the Vikings reinforced their rainstorm on the Sabercats' parade.

The Lawrence lead grew to as large as 15 points before a jumper from Morrison stopped the bleeding. But it was only a temporary fix, as once again, the Sabercats shot just 3-11 from the floor. The Sabercats were cold, and they were trailing by 13 going into the final act.

Maranatha would go on to win the fourth quarter battle but lose the war. On the positive side, Katelyn Morrison hit four points from off the bench and the Sabercats scored 18 points. Also, the Sabercats limited Lawrence to just 3-12 shooting, but the Vikings were on point from the line, knocking down 11 of 12 shots from the charity stripe to seal the win. Earl hit a perfect 8-8 free throws as the Vikings coasted to the 12-point win inside the Alexander Gymnasium.

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MBU Starters: 3- Morrison, 4- Wright, 12- Johnson, 13- Johnson, 30- Lawver

STATS

• Morrison: 20 PTS, 8 REB, 6 AST
• Johnson: 18 PTS, 6 REB, 2 BLK
• Earl: 30 PTS for Lawrence
• MBU: shot 38 percent from the field
• Last year: The Vikings won 69-49 - it was the Sabercats' first game of the season
• Series: Lawrence now leads the all-time series 12-1

OPPONENTS

• Lawrence competes in the Midwest Conference
• Lawrence opened the season with back-to-back wins over Carroll and Finlandia
• Lawrence finished last season with a 6-18 record

NEXT

The Sabercats will host Finlandia University on Saturday for a 1:00 p.m. tip. Follow at mbusabercats.com/schedule.