FOND DU LAC - Marian University women's basketball (2-5, 0-1 NACC) could hold off Rockford in the second half falling to the Regents 62-56 in the first game of NACC play.

Marian had a strong start especially on the defensive end forcing 16 turnovers in the first half of action.  The Sabres led through the entire first half building a seven-point lead after the first quarter of action.  Marian built their lead to as large as 12 at 26-14 with 4:45 left in the second quarter.  Rockford was able to battle back in the final minutes of the first half, however, cutting their deficit down to 28-22.

The Rockford defense then stepped up to open the third quarter as the Regents were able to go on a 16-2 run to open the second half and go ahead 38-30.  Marian rallied after a timeout with seven unanswered points, but Rockford would still hold a 40-37 lead going into the final quarter.  The fourth stanza opened with Rockford scoring nine unanswered points to build a 49-37 lead with 7:09 left to play, their largest lead of the game.  The Sabres managed to cut their deficit down to as little as four at 53-49 with 2:06 remaining, but Rockford would hold off the momentum and hold on for a 62-56 win.

Junior Claire Levendoski led the way for the Sabres with a team-high 14 points with freshman Brianna Martin adding 13 points and fellow freshman Hope Burns chipping in 12.  Junior Madison Holdiman had six rebounds to go with a pair of assists and three steals.

Marian plays their first road game in NACC play Saturday, Dec. 4 traveling to Benedictine for a 2 p.m. tip.