The Holy Cross College women’s basketball team faced a tough test on Saturday afternoon, falling 88–69 to a strong Olivet Nazarene squad inside McKenna Arena.
Olivet came out with early energy, jumping out to a 20–13 lead after the first quarter and maintaining control throughout the contest. Despite the deficit, the Saints showed resilience, matching Olivet’s physicality and continuing to fight on both ends of the floor.
Sincere Coleman-Francis led Holy Cross with 17 points and 9 rebounds, attacking the basket and converting at the free-throw line. Kaiden Hanley added a team-high 20 points on an efficient 4-of-5 shooting from the field, while Audrey Tallent contributed 7 points and a game-high 7 assists to anchor the offense. Lilly Toppen chipped in 8 points, and Brock Bittermann provided a spark off the bench with 7 points.
Holy Cross shot 40 percent from the field and 80 percent from the free-throw line, continuing to find offensive rhythm as the game progressed. The Saints out-rebounded Olivet 46–38 and recorded 17 assists as a team, highlighting strong ball movement and effort on the glass.
Olivet capitalized on turnovers, scoring 31 points off giveaways, and received a significant boost from its bench, which accounted for 40 points on the afternoon. Despite the final score, the Saints continued to compete through all four quarters, cutting into the deficit multiple times and showing flashes of their potential against one of the conference’s top teams.
Holy Cross now turns its focus to the next stretch of conference play on Wednesday January 7th away at IU Northwest. Tipoff is set for 6PM.