Box Score PALATINE, IL-  12 days after losing a 10-point fourth quarter lead against Elgin, the Hawks had their chance at revenge as they traveled to face the Spartans on Tuesday.  Despite a slow start, the Hawks were able to see a few leads but ultimately fell short for a 65-60 loss.

Unfortunately, a trend is starting to creep up on the Hawks as they fell victim to another slow start in the first quarter as Elgin scored the first 9 points of the game before head coach Sean Stochl called a timeout.  Ashley Shapiro finally put the Hawks on the board with two free throws, which seemed to be a jumpstart the Hawks needed.  Following the free throws, Carrie Kerlin hit a corner jumper followed by a three pointer by Sydney Heinrich to bring the Hawks back within 2.  At the end of the first, the Hawks trailed by a manageable 3-point margin 20-17.  Newcomer Abbey Sloan made an instant impact in the second quarter as she went on to score the first 6 points of the quarter and give the Hawks their first lead at 23-22.  The teams would trade baskets as Kaela Drum and Shapiro flashed some low post moves and Angelina Villasin hit a pair of free throws at the end of the quarter.  Heading into halftime, the Hawks still trailed by a score of 36-33.

After the break, the Hawks started the third quarter in another funk and fell behind 45-36 after a pair of Drum free throws got the scoring started.  Harper would go just 3-11 from the field in the quarter and found themselves trailing 51-45.  The fourth quarter brought a lot of action and drama up until the final buzzer.  Both teams would see leads for short periods of time before Elgin eventually took a 61-60 lead with just under a minute to play.  After a missed jumper by the Hawks, a loose ball that appeared to be touched by an Elgin defender rolled out of bounds was ruled to be last touched by Harper.  After fouling on the inbound pass, the Spartans hit both free throws for a 3 point lead with 12 seconds remaining.  A well run play got the Hawks an open look for a three, but the shot would not fall and Elgin got the rebound and was fouled again.  The last two Elgin free throws made the final score 65-60 in favor of the Spartans.

Shooting woes and defensive miscommunication continue to be the Achilles' heel for the Hawks as they shot 39% from the field and allowed far too many open looks from the Spartans.  On the bright side, Harper had 4 players finish with double digit points with Ashley Shapiro and Kaela Drum leading the way with 17 points each.  Shapiro also notched 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, and 5 blocks which all led the team.

Following the loss, the Hawks fall to 3-10 on the year.  The final game before the new year will be tonight as Harper hosts the College of Lake County Lancers at Robert Morris University, the 2017-18 home of the Harper Hawks.  In the first matchup between the two teams, the Hawks defeated the Lancers 52-49.  Tip-off is scheduled for 5pm.