Sophomore guard Jaianna Brooks scored 15 points and grabbed a career-high nine rebounds to help lead the Lake Forest College women's basketball team to a 62-57 victory over visiting Grinnell College on Friday.
Brooks had six points in the first half before connecting three times from beyond the arc in the third quarter. She was one of three Foresters to score in double figures, joining senior forward Hannah Hiland, who was 7-for-7 from the foul line and led the squad with 16 points, and junior guard Zaria Sydnor, who had 10 points, four assists, and three steals. Freshman forward Adia Maund gave the home team a boost off the bench, scoring six points, pulling down seven rebounds, and adding a steal and two assists.
Grinnell shot 25.6 percent from the field, the Foresters were at 36.7, and both teams were successful on eight three-pointers. Thanks in large part to Hiland, Lake Forest had the edge at the free throw line, making 10 of 11 attempts while the Pioneers were just 7-for-12. The visitors had a 44-37 edge in rebounds but committed 17 turnovers to Lake Forest's 12.
The Foresters started the contest with a high level of efficiency on offense, shooting nearly 69 percent (11 for 16) from the field to take a 12-point lead early in the second quarter. Grinnell scored the next 10 points and, after a free throw by Sydnor, rattled off eight more to pull ahead by five. A Lake Forest three-pointer and Pioneer layup made the score 34-30 in favor of the visitors at halftime.
The lead changed hands five times early in the third, including twice on three-pointers by Brooks. There were two more lead changes late in the period, which ended with a Sydnor buzzer-beater that gave the home team a 53-47 advantage. A three-pointer by Highland made it a nine-point game with 8:11 to play but the Pioneers eventually closed back to within a point on a basket with 16.1 seconds on the clock. Highland, however, closed out the victory with a pair of free throws with 12.7 seconds left and two more with 1.9 on the clock.
It was the first Midwest Conference game of the season and both teams are now 2-4 overall.
Lake Forest will host Cornell College Saturday afternoon at 1:00.