GRINNELL, Iowa – Grinnell College's women's basketball team may not have beaten nationally-ranked Ripon College Saturday, but the Pioneers certainly made sure the Red Hawks knew they were in for a game.
 
Grinnell climbed within 34-30 midway through the third quarter before Ripon, ranked 19^th and 24^th in national polls, pulled away for a 67-40 victory at Darby Gymnasium.
 
The Red Hawks dominated the boards, owning a 51-29 edge in the Midwest Conference affair.
 
Grinnell grabbed three early leads, the last at 8-6 on a layup by Juniper Schwartzman '26, only to see Ripon open up a 23-13 lead by the end of the first period.
 
Grinnell (4-3 MWC, 7-8 overall) closed within 32-24 by halftime and, after the teams exchanged baskets to start the third quarter, the hosts made things interesting as Ava Wu '29 sank a jumper and Kelsey Ericksen '26 made a pair of free throws to make it a 34-30 game with 6:54 left.
 
But Ripon (8-0 MWC, 15-2 overall) responded with an eight-point run and extended its lead to 52-34 by the end of three quarters. The Red Hawks held a 19-6 scoring edge in the final period.
 
Grinnell got eight points from both Nora Lynch '28 and Schwartzman, while Bailey Strovers '27 grabbed seven boards and Schwartzman tallied six. Ericksen dished out two assists.
 
The Pioneers travel to Galesburg, Ill., on Wednesday to face Knox College. Tip-off is 7:30 p.m.