Pioneers fall short by a point

UW-Platteville fell one point short as the Pioneers dropped an 82-81 game at Fontbonne University Friday night in St. Louis, Missouri.

The Pioneers took their last lead at 64-63 on Kassie Hansen's jump shot with 8:44 to play and tied the game at 66-66 on Amber Williams' layup at 8:09. The Griffins then scored the next seven points, taking a 73-66 lead. Trailing 80-74,UW-Platteville scored five straight, cutting the deficit to one. Lexis Macomber made a layup with 2:05 to play, and Kassie Buchholz drilled a three-point shot with 1:32 remaining, making the score 80-79. 

Fontbonne's Kaitlynn Walker made 1-2 free shots with 31 seconds left, but the Pioneers missed three straight attempts to tie or take the lead. The Griffins finally grabbed a defensive rebound, and Rylee Stafford made 1-2 free throws with six seconds left. Kassie Buchholz scored at the buzzer but was inside the three-point line as the Pioneers were unable to get off a three-point attempt. 

Buchholz led the Pioneers with 25 points, and Macomber scored 13 to pace the Pioneers, who fell to 4-6. Paige Black scored 21 points, and Stafford had 18 for Fontbonne, who improved to 6-6.

The Pioneers continue their St. Louis trip Saturday by playing 24th-ranked Wash. U. at 2 p.m.

By Paul Erickson, Director, UW-Platteville Communications, 608.342.1194, pr@uwplatt.edu