ADRIAN, Mich. - The Bluffton University women's basketball team dropped a 70-66 decision at Adrian College on Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025. Bluffton slipped to 3-1 with its first loss of the year, while the Bulldogs improved to 3-1 on the season.
Adrian jumped out to a 23-6 lead before nine straight Bluffton counters made it an eight-point game (23-15). Freshman Karlie Niekamp (Tipp City/Fort Recovery) contributed six of those points and Alexis Stevely (Marion/Wynford) hit from outside the arc. Senior Madison Brown (Montpelier/North Central) knocked down a pair of freebies and then she beat the buzzer, making it 27-19 Adrian at the end of period one.
Trailing 36-25 with 2:52 left in the half, freshman Macee Heckathorn (Kenton) got an offensive rebound and put it back up, pulling the Beavers within single digits. Brown scored at the 1:11 mark and then she beat the buzzer for the second straight quarter, but the Beavers still trailed 42-31 at the break.
Bluffton was on fire to open the third quarter, using a 14-3 spurt to knot the game at 45 apiece less than four minutes into the second half. Niekamp and Brown both dialed long distance as the dynamic duo combined for 12 of the 14 points! Lacie Fenstermaker (Leipsic/Pandora-Gilboa) and Heckathorn both hit from in close before Adrian rallied for a 59-49 lead after three quarters.
A pair of Heckathorn buckets helped the visitors get the deficit down to three (63-60). It was still a three-point spread when she got to the rack with 38 seconds remaining, but Adrian made three late freebies to close out its 70-66 victory.
Brown led the Beavers with 25 points and she also pulled down seven rebounds. Niekamp bucketed a career-high 16 points, while Heckathorn equaled her career best with a dozen markers. She ripped down a career-high eight rebounds. Fenstermaker paced the visitors with 10 boards and Rachel Clark (Lima/Bath) dished out three helpers.
Bluffton hit 25-of-66 (37.9 percent), but just 3-for-19 (15.8 percent) from distance. The Beavers were 13-of-16 (81.3 percent) at the charity stripe. The visitors pulled down five more rebounds (38-33), but they also turned it over six more times (20-14).
The Bluffton women will be off until next Tuesday, Nov. 25, when they make the short trip to Heidelberg University in Tiffin for a 6 p.m. tip-off.
-BEAVERS-