GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Davenport women's basketball team had two games decided by four points or less through their first 26 games this season. The Panthers have needed a heart monitor on the bench however in their last five games which all have been decided by four points or less. DU has won four of those five games including a 64-61 win in the WHAC Tournament First Round against Aquinas.

The first quarter was a frantic pace as the Panthers led 24-20 after shooting 10-of-15 in the quarter. The Saints forced tougher shots in the second quarter as DU shot 2-of-7 from the floor. The Panthers did make 6-of-8 at the free throw line and led 35-34 heading into halftime.

The third quarter saw Aquinas take the lead as they shot 37.5 percent from the floor and allowed just 10 points for a 48-45 lead heading into the fourth quarter. The Saints led for 27:24 in the game while Davenport had the lead for 10:22. In the final quarter, Chri Carter opened the scoring for DU on a layup to cut the lead to one. The Saints then ran off eight straight points to take their largest lead of the game at 56-47 with 7:30 to play.

The Panthers came back to score the next seven points and trailed 56-54 at the 4:12 mark after a running layup by Amanda Merz. Deiona Rogers answered with a step-back three on the next possession to increase the lead back to five. Emily Severn then checked back into the game for the Panthers and made her presence felt. She posted up for a basket with 2:51 left and then assisted on a post feed to Jenna Falkenberg who cut the lead to 59-58 with 1:34 to play.

Severn put the Panthers ahead 60-59 on another post move with 57 ticks left and DU called a timeout. Aquinas answered as Rogers nailed a tough jumper from 14 feet over the outstretch arms of Falkenberg making it 61-60 with 44 seconds to go. Carter and Falkenberg each missed a shot on the next possession but DU's offensive rebounding gave them a third chance and Carter was fouled with 15 seconds remaining. She calmly made both free throws for a 62-61 lead.

After a timeout, Aquinas inbounded in front of their own bench and were trapped by the Panthers. Hannah Brefeld lost the ball and Carter got the steal and fired the ball downcourt to Molly Babbs for the fast-break layup with 0.5 seconds to play. Aquinas called timeout and again got the ball in front of their bench, but the inbounds was deflected as the final horn sounded.

Davenport beat Aquinas for the 23rd straight meeting and lead the all-time series 24-6. The Panthers will now host Lawrence Tech on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 1 p.m. in the WHAC Tournament Semifinals. The game featured six ties and 14 lead changes. Hannah Wilkerson scored 10 points in the first quarter and finished with a team-high 14 on 6-of-9 shooting. Carter joined her in double figures with 11 points going 7-of-8 at the foul line and also led the team with three steals. Falkenberg swatted five shots and grabbed seven rebounds in 18 minutes. Babbs finished with eight points and five boards in 28 minutes.