CINCINNATI, Ohio – The Franklin College women's basketball team looked to make it a weekend sweep of the Mount St. Joseph Lions when the two Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) foes met inside The Mount's Harrington Center on Saturday (Feb. 13) afternoon.

Franklin (5-4) got a pair of huge individual performances, with sophomore Bayleigh Torrance pouring in a career-high 24 points and Britney Ballard adding 20 points. But the Grizzlies fell into an early hole that proved too large to overcome, as the Lions (3-3) emerged with an 82-70 win.

The first quarter featured a barrage of three-pointers from the home side, with The Mount knocking down seven triples in the opening 10 minutes and shooting 55% (11-for-20) from the field. Turnovers also proved large, with the Lions holding a 10-1 edge in giveaways on their way to a 33-12 lead after one period.

Franklin started to find their footing in the second quarter and began to chip away at the Lions' sizeable lead. The Grizzlies used a 10-0 run midway through the period to get within 44-31 at the half. The Grizzly defense held the Lions to 4-for-17 shooting in the second period.

Franklin continued their run to start the second half, roaring all the way back to within four with 3:46 to go in the quarter after a fast-break layup by Jessica Nix. But a late triple from the Lions sent them into the final period with a bit more cushion in the form of a 60-52 lead.

Ballard opened the fourth quarter with five straight points to bring Franklin within three, part of a run where she scored 10 straight Grizzly points. A Lindsay Freije layup with 3:59 to play made it 69-68 Lions, but The Mount would stifle the comeback bid with a 13-2 run to close the game.

Franklin connected on 38.1% (24-for-63) of their field goals, hitting four three-pointers and going 18-for-23 at the line. Rebounds were 48-35 in Franklin's favor, with Torrance's 10 board giving her the first double-double of her career. Nix led Franklin with four assists and five steals on the day.

The Grizzlies will be on the road for the final time in the regular season next Friday (Feb. 19) night, traveling north to take on the Manchester Spartans. Tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m.