Wheaton, IL – Alma College Women's Basketball took part in a pair of games at the Wheaton Invite over the weekend. Alma secured split results, narrowly falling to Simpson College 73-70 on Friday evening, before downing Lake Forest 90-70 on Saturday afternoon.

Simpson 73, Alma 70
On Friday evening, Alma took on Simpson, with the teams battling to a 9-9 tie halfway through the opening quarter. Simpson took a 14-12 lead to the break, and pushed ahead by seven points midway through the second quarter. The opposition lead got as high as 11, before an Anna Watersredt layup in the waning moments of the first half cut it to nine. At halftime the score was 36-27 Simpson.

Out of the half, Alma conceded an 8-2 run, falling behind 44-29 with 6:37 to play in the third, before Alma found a groove. The Scots narrowed the gap from 15 down to four, and Kate Starkey made it a one-possession game with 2:45 to play. Alma's run continued, and the Scots briefly took the lead, before Simpson was able to get back in front, after three it was 54-53 Simpson. Alma survived an early fourth quarter surge to hang in, and despite several late chances, were unable to tie at the buzzer, falling 73-70.

Kate Starkey led with 19 points, also snagging three rebounds and two assists. Molley Deurloo had a double-double with 13 points and a team leading 12 rebounds in the loss, and Breckyn Werner posted 13 points and nine boards.

Alma 90, Lake Forest 70
On Saturday Alma took on Lake Forest. It was a contest that looked to be evenly matched in the early going, with the Scots holding an 8-7 advantage early. However, Alma caught fire, and ripped off a 15-6 run to lead 23-13 after one quarter. Opening the second, it was all Scots, as Alma opened up a 14-point lead at 30-16 midway through the quarter. However, the Foresters wouldn't go away, pulling back within four points at halftime, the Alma lead down to 41-37.

Out of the half, the Scots scored early and often, hanging 16 points on the board in just five minutes to lead comfortably at 53-41. The gap continued to grow as Alma poured it on, leading by as much as 18 in the period. After three quarters, the score was 64-48 Scots. Lake Forest was never able to get back within touching distance in the final period, with Alma's lead hitting 20 with eight minutes to play. The margin hovered between 17 and 23 for most of the quarter, with the final score resting at 90-70 Alma.

Cadence Kaminske led with 25 points and a pair of steals in the win, earning all-tournament team honors in the process. Molly Deurloo scored 15, adding five boards and four assists, and Alma got 10 points apiece from Kate Starkey and Breckyn Werner.

Alma moves to 1-3 on the season, and looks forward to a matchup with nationally ranked Hope College on Tuesday evening.