(Peru, Neb.)- Peru State Women's Basketball team defeated the Graceland Yellowjackets 77-73 on Wednesday night. The Bobcats are now 4-6 in the Heart of America Conference and 7-7 overall.  

The Bobcats had a slow start in their matchup, as the Yellowjackets took a early 8-0 start in the first quarter. Hailey Ingram ended their run with a layup followed by shots in the paint by Samantha Stewart (Sr., Mount Ayr, IA) and Kaylan Larry (Sr., Little Rock, AR)  . Final free throws ended the first quarter as the Bobcats were down 13-24.  

In the second quarter, the Bobcats came out ready to chip away at the Yellowjackets lead. Kaylan Larry started them off with a jumper in the first 15 seconds of the quarter. Hailey Ingram (Jr., Omaha, NE) had back-to-back 3-pointers for the Bobcats and a final 3-pointer ended the half as the Bobcats only trailed 32-35. 

To start out the second half, Hailey Ingram had a 3-pointer that closed the gap for the Bobcats. The Bobcats continued to fight throughout the quarter keeping the game close with the Yellowjackets. A layup by Natasha Deal (Jr., Winnebago, NE) ended the third quarter with a score of 53-54. 

In the final quarter of the game, free throws by Kaylan Larry gave the Bobcats their first lead of the game, Maddy Duncan (Sr., Hamburg, IA) followed with a 3-pointer for the Bobcats. The team shot 53.85% with a 66.67% 3-point percentage. Kaylan Larry had 13 points in the fourth quarter, having the final point in the game as the Bobcats took the win 77-73. 

Hailey Ingram led the team with 21 points, six rebounds and two assists and steals. Kaylan Larry tallied 19 points for the Bobcats. Samantha Stewart scored 16, had 11 rebounds and three steals. Stewart also hit her 1,000th collegiate career point during the game! Maddy Duncan tallied 11 points and three rebounds.  

Next: The Bobcats take on the William Penn Statesman on Saturday, January 6th. Tipoff is set for 2:00 PM. Go Bobcats!