Ottawa, Kan. -- The Friends University Falcons led for the final 31:30 in defeating the Ottawa University Braves 88-78 in KCAC action today (Jan. 4) in Ottawa, Kan. 

With 1:30 left in the first quarter, Jadyn Glasgow put in a three to put the Falcons on top and ignite a 7-1 spurt to close out the frame and give Friends a 23-17 edge. 

In the second quarter, Kyla Frenchers nailed a three in between assisting on a score by Lauryn McIver and a three by Kori Babcock to help the Falcons extend their lead to what would be their biggest of the game at 31-19.   
The Braves then made a run, outscoring the Falcons 13-4 over a 4:30 stretch to cut the lead to 38-36. 

It was still a two-point game when a late score by Abigail Barr helped the Falcons lead 45-42 at the break. 

The Falcons came out strong to begin the third quarter with a score from Barr sandwiched in between a pair of threes by Babcock to again lead by 10 less than two minutes into the second half. 

Another trey by Babcock stretched the lead back to 11 and the Falcons maintained control with a 66-57 lead heading to the fourth quarter. 

After the Braves twice came within four, buckets by McIver and Taylor Jackson doubled the lead back to eight with 3:44 left. 

With the lead at five and 1:08 left, McIver stepped up and nailed six straight crucial free throws to put it away for Friends. 

McIver led Friends with a career-high 25 points while contributing five assists, two blocks, and seven rebounds. Babcock was another top performer, scoring 22 points and hitting six 3-pointers. Barr added 13 points and Frenchers distributed throughout with a career-best nine assists. Jackson dominated on the boards, collecting a game-high 14 rebounds to help the Falcons outrebound the Braves 50-29 overall. 

Dominique Schutte led the Braves (5-9, 2-6 KCAC) with 31 points, including eight 3-pointers out of 11 attempts. Nora Ford contributed 14 points and recorded eight steals and five assists.  Abbie Sextro also scored 14 points for the Braves. 

Friends was effective on both ends, outshooting the Braves 53.2 percent to 34.3 percent from the field and 52.6 percent to 37 percent from three-point distance. 

The Falcons, now 8-6 and tied for third in the KCAC with a 6-2 conference record, will next return to the Garvey Center and host Sterling College Wednesday evening (Jan. 8) at 6 pm.