Fifth-year senior Whitney Frame became the 10th Knight to surpass the 1,000- point plateau on Saturday.

SPRING ARBOR, Michigan - It was an afternoon built for drama and history for the Marian College women's basketball team as it traveled to Spring Arbor University for a key Mid-Central College Conference matchup.

 

Not only did the Knights pull off a road victory in conference play, 52-49, on a jumper by junior Megan Egenolf (Plainfield, Indiana/Plainfield) with seven seconds left to play, but fifth-year senior Whitney Frame (Lynn, Indiana/Randolph Southern) scored her 1,000th career point.

 

"I am happy to see Whitney's accomplishment come in a victory," said head coach Todd Bacon. "She has been really consistent during her career and has done exactly what we expected of her when we signed her. It has been good to see not only her development as a player, but, more importantly, her maturation as an individual."

 

The Knights jumped out to a 13-2 lead over the first 4:27 of the game. After a pair of SAU free throws cut the lead to nine, 13-4, the stage was set for Frame.

 

Sitting on 999 points after 102 career games, it was Frame's time. With 14:14 remaining in the first half, the Lynn, Indiana native, hit a jumper to put the Knights up 15-4 and to become the 10th Marian College women's basketball player in school history to accumulate 1,000 career points.

 

However, after a pair of free throws put the Knights up 11 once again, 17-6, the Cougars went on a 6-0 run to cut the lead to five, 17-12, with 11:36 remaining in the half. The Knights pushed the lead back to eight, 27-19, with 5:58 remaining, but a 7-0 SAU run closed the gap to one, 27-26, with 2:02 to go.

 

A three-pointer by senior Jessica Carr (New Castle, Indiana/New Castle) and one of two free throws by junior Molly Lauck (Greenwood, Indiana/Center Grove) gave the Knights a five-point lead, 31-26, at halftime.

 

The Knights shot 41 percent (12-for-29) in the first half and held the Cougars to just 37 percent (11-for-30).

 

The Knights opened the second frame cold as the Cougars went on a 6-0 run to tie the game, 32-32, with 13:56 on the clock. It was at this point that it seemed to be a close game.

 

With 8:10 remaining in the game, the Knights opened up the lead to seven, 44-37, on the strength of an 8-1 run. SAU answered with a 5-0 run to cut it to two, 44-42, with 5:58 to go. The Knights pushed the lead back to five, 48-43, with 5:17 to go, but a 6-0 SAU run gave the Cougars their first lead of the second half, 49-48, with 51 seconds remaining.

 

After a foul on SAU, the Cougars called a timeout to set up their defense against the Knights. However, it made little difference as head coach Todd Bacon's gameplan worked to perfection as junior Megan Egenolf was able to knock down a 12-foot jumper to give the Knights a 50-49 lead with seven ticks to go.

 

Egenolf continued her stellar play after she swiped the ball with under five seconds to go and a foul allowed Carr to step to the line to give the Knights the 52-49 victory.

 

Whitney Frame led two Knights in double figures with 13 points, had five rebounds, and handed out two assists. Megan Egenolf finished the day with 12 points, two rebounds, and three steals.

 

Molly Lauck finished the game with four points and had a game-high 10 rebounds. She also had two steals. Jessica Carr also added seven points and eight rebounds.

 

The Knights are 17-5 on the season and 5-4 in the MCC.

 

Marian College comes back home on Wednesday night to take on Grace College at the Physical Education Center. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m., and the game can be heard LIVE on www.marian.edu/athletics by clicking the LISTEN LIVE link on the left side.