DUBUQUE, Iowa – Grinnell College erupted with a big comeback against the defending Iowa Conference champs, but in the end the University of Dubuque squeaked out a 74-69 victory in the title game of the Jon Davison Classic Wednesday.
 
Grinnell, 5-5 on the season, fell behind by as many as 13 points in the first half before clawing its way back to trail by only two in the fourth period.
 
The tourney was a homecoming of sorts for Grinnell coach Dana Harrold, who played at Dubuque and later went on to be an assistant coach for the Spartans.
 
Grinnell sported a balanced scoring attack as Alissa Hirsh '16 scored 15 points, Kayla Morrissey '18 and Anne Boldt '16 had 13 each and Alex Neckopulos '17 worked her way to yet another double-double with 12 points and 17 boards while earning all-tournament team honors.
 
Hirsh also distributed seven assists, Neckopulos had two blocks and she and Morrissey came up with one steal each.
 
Dubuque, 5-6 on the year, got 25 points from Abbey Meyer.
 
The hosts led 25-17 after the first period and went up by 13 twice in the second quarter before Grinnell cut the gap to 42-34 by halftime.
 
The Pioneers came within five in the third period, but Dubuque took off to lead 58-47 by quarter's end.
 
But Grinnell proved it was not going away anytime soon. Trailing by 10 points, Lydia Stariha '17 and Boldt drained consecutive 3-pointers to bring the Pioneers within 62-58 with 4:56 left in the game. Morrissey followed with a jumper to make it a two-point game with 4:06 left.
 
Later, Dubuque went up by eight before Hirsh, Neckopulos and Morrissey all hit baskets to bring Grinnell within 71-69 with 47 ticks left on the clock.
 
However, the Spartans got three free throws down the stretch to survive.
 
Grinnell returns to Midwest Conference play Saturday with a contest at Lawrence University. Game time in Appleton, Wis., is slated for 3 p.m.