WINONA LAKE, Ind. - Grace College's women's basketball team overcame a slow start on the way to a 72-65 victory over St. Xavier on Tuesday night.

The Lancers (3-2) were led by another breakout performance from Morganne Houk. The freshman tied a career high with 18 points in the seven point victory.

The Lancers got off to a sluggish start in the first quarter and found themselves down 23-12 with two-minutes left in the opening stanza.

Grace ended the quarter on a 9-0 run, capped off by a bucket from Bekah Marshall to pull within two at the quarter break.

The Lancers and Cougars traded scores to start the second quarter and with 5:25 left in the half, the game was tied at 27 apiece.

Grace recaptured the lead at 29-27 after a Kaylee Patton converted on a second-chance opportunity.

The Lancers' lead reached as many as seven points following a trifecta from Marshall pushed the Grace advantage to 34-27. The score capped off a 24-4 run for Grace.

St. Xavier pulled back with three points but a late score from Molly Long had Lancers leading 43-38 at the half.

Grace shot 48.5 percent in the opening half compared to 44.4 from St. Xavier. The Lancers turned the ball over 11 times in the first half, four more times than the Cougars.

St. Xavier scored the first basket of the second half but a 3-point shot from Houk, sandwiched by scores from Maddie Ryman and Patton saw Grace's lead grow to 10 points.

The Lancers' defense held the Cougars to just 25 percent shooting in the quarter as the lead hovered around double digits for the entirety of the frame.

The final quarter started with two 3-point baskets from Ryman and an old-fashioned 3-point play from Houk saw Grace's lead balloon to 19 points.

Despite trailing by nearly 20 points with 6:55 left, the Cougars didn't roll over and slowly started to claw their way back.

St. Xavier cut the deficit down to single digits late in the quarter, but was unable to get any closer as Grace closed the door on the 72-65 victory.

"So pumped about how these ladies respond tonight, " said Grace head coach Dan Davis. "After a tough weekend it was good to see them improve on the things that we emphasized and start to find their groove on both ends of the floor."

Houk led all players with her 18 points and also added 5 rebounds and 3 steals. Ryman double-doubled with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Patton also doubled with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Marshall had 13 points.

The Lancers shot 48 percent while the Cougars struggled from the field to a tune of 36 percent. The Lancers turned the ball over 29 times, 12 times in the fourth quarter.

Grace will open Crossroads League play on Saturday at Marian.