Franklin women's basketball faced a tough road test to open the new season, taking on Wittenberg in the first game of the Angel Saddler Tip-Off Classic at Webster on Friday night.
A difficult third quarter proved too much for the Grizzlies to overcome in a 74-57 setback.
The Grizzlies trailed 25-15 after the first quarter but fought back to within six by the half, cutting the deficit to 34-28 when
Molly Schulte scored three points in the final 11 seconds. But the third saw Wittenberg open with an 8-0 run and stretch the margin to 22 points going into the fourth.
Franklin, which shot just 35.4% (17 for 48) from the field, was unable to get any closer than 17 the rest of the way.
Schulte paced the Grizzlies with 17 points and three steals in defeat, while
Erica Buening,
Avery Kelley and
Payton Seay added nine points apiece. Buening led the team with six rebounds.
The Griz will face the host Gorloks on Saturday afternoon (2 p.m. Eastern).
