APPLETON, Wis. -- The Lawrence University women's basketball team rallied late Saturday but came up short in a 72-64 Midwest Conference setback against Illinois College at Alexander Gymnasium.
    Lawrence trailed by as many as 18 points in the second half before cutting the margin to four points in the final minutes.
    Maggie Culver led Lawrence (3-6, 2-2 MWC) with 17 points as she went 6-for-9 from the floor and added six rebounds and three assists. Delaney Brooks came off the bench to score 12 points for the Vikings, and she picked up four rebounds and three assists. Mallory Meyer added 10 points and five rebounds for Lawrence.
    Maya Smith paced Illinois College (3-5, 2-2) with 18 points, going 11-for-11 from the foul line, and added seven rebounds.
    Lawrence trailed 30-22 at the half, but the Lady Blues pulled away to a 48-30 advantage late in the third quarter. Lawrence finished the quarter on a 7-0 run, capped by Libby Crandall's jumper, to trim the margin to 48-37 heading to the fourth quarter.
    The Vikings were down 57-46 when Caroline Sharpe hit a 3-pointer and followed that with a layup to cut the margin to 57-51 with 3:35 left. After a free throw from the Lady Blues, Brooks buried a 3-pointer to cut the lead to 58-54.
    The Vikings were still down four at 60-56 after a jumper from Meyer when Anna McKee hit a 3-pointer for Illinois College. Illinois College followed with four consecutive free throws to push the margin back to 67-56 with 41 seconds left. Lawrence didn't get closer than eight points the rest of the way.
    The Vikings return to action on Tuesday when the host Alverno College in a nonconference game.