PAINESVILLE, Ohio - The Lake Erie College women's basketball team could not climb out of a 17-point halftime hole against Mercyhurst on Thursday (Dec. 17) night at the Jerome T. Osborne Family Athletic and Wellness Center, losing to the Lakers, 68-58.  

Senior guard Renese Ames (Bedford, Ohio/Bedford) tied a season-high with 19 points, but her performance could not overcome a dismal shooting night for the Storm, which connected on just 20 percent (6-for-30) from the field in the first half.  

The Lakers took a 36-19 lead into the break after the Storm hit just three of 24 field goals to start the game.

Lake Erie opened up the second half on a 12-5 run, applying a full-court pressure defense that seemed to spark the Storm unit. That run cut the Lakers' lead to 41-31, but Mercyhurst's 17-7 burst in the next eight minutes opened up a 20-point advantage.  

The Storm was again able to cut into that Mercyhurst lead and trailed by just eight with 2:32 to play, but neither team made a field goal for the remainder of the game as the Lakers closed out the win.  

Lake Erie shot 48 percent (13-for-27) in the second half to finish at 33 percent (19-for-57), while limiting the Lakers to a respectable 42 percent (25-for-60) shooting for the game.  

The Lakers, though, held the Storm to just six offensive rebounds and finished with a 50-29 overall advantage on the glass and an 11-5 advantage in second-chance points.  

Ames was the only Storm player in double figures. Junior forward Alyssa Wagers (Stow, Ohio/Stow) added nine points and a team-high nine rebounds and sophomore guard Britt Busson (Wadsworth, Ohio/Wadsworth) also chipped in nine points.  

Amy Achesinski (11 points, 12 rebounds) and Jackie Artise (12 points, 11 rebounds) each had a double-double for the Lakers, while Samantha Loadman added a team-high 14 points off the bench.  

The Storm will return to the home floor on Monday (Dec. 21) to host Notre Dame (Ohio). Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. with the Storm men's basketball team tipping off at 7 p.m. against California (Pa.).