INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- A dismal first half ultimately proved too much to overcome as the Lady Railsplitters (7-4) suffered a 76-64 loss to the Indianapolis Greyhounds (4-5) in NCAA Division II women's basketball action on Saturday afternoon in the University of Indianapolis' Nicoson Hall.
 
Aside from a substantial and efficient effort at the charity stripe, the first half went about as poorly as possible for the Lady Railsplitters. Lincoln Memorial finished just 6-for-21 (28.6 percent) from the field with 11 turnovers, while the Greyhounds knocked down 12 of their 24 field-goal attempts with more three-pointers (7) than the Lady Railsplitters had made baskets (6). The visiting unit saved itself from a much worse fate by going 17-for-22 from the free throw line, as 29 total fouls were whistled in the first half alone.
 
The Lady Railsplitters turned it around in the second half, outscoring the Greyhounds 35-29. Lincoln Memorial shot 46.2 percent and limited UIndy to a 10-for-24 mark in the second stanza, but they were unable to make up for a 47-29 halftime deficit.
 
Kiara Rawls (Killeen, Texas) and Megan Pittman (Liberty, Ky.) were bright spots for the Lady Railsplitters offensively. Rawls led all players with 24 points - scoring 23 points in the second half alone - on 8-for-11 shooting and an 8-for-11 mark from the free throw line. Pittman collected 15 points and seven rebounds on 5-for-11 shooting. Josey Harding (Middletown, Ohio) was the only other Lady Railsplitter with more than seven points, as she pitched in eight points and five rebounds in 30 minutes off the bench.
 
Lincoln Memorial finished with an 18-for-47 (38.3 percent) mark from the field, a 0-for-3 clip from the three-point line and a season-best 28-for-39 (71.8 percent) effort from the charity stripe. Saturday was the first time the Lady Railsplitters have gone without a three-pointer in over nine years, dating back to a 75-46 loss at Tusculum on December 13, 2005.  The Lady Railsplitters logged a narrow 33-32 advantage on the glass, but 19 turnovers resulted in 14 points for the Greyhounds. Lincoln Memorial accounted for a 34-18 cushion on points in the paint.
 
The Greyhounds scored the first six points of the game before Kiara Rawls put the Lady Railsplitters into the scoring column with a free throw at the 16:46 mark. Kelly Walter and Sarah Costello compiled a 7-0 run for UIndy over the ensuing passage of play that bludgeoned the home team out to a commanding 13-1 advantage. A Britney Guy layup at the 12:47 clip cut LMU's deficit to nine points, but two Costello free throws extended the Indianapolis' lead to 23-7 with 10:45 remaining in the half. The Lady Railsplitters would never close the gap to less than 13 for the remainder of the frame, while another Costello trifecta made it 45-25 in the Greyhounds' favor at the 1:35 mark. Two Megan Pittman free throws sent the Lady Railsplitters into the half trailing 47-29.
 
Another Walker three-pointer gave the Greyhounds their largest lead of the contest at 54-33 with 16:39 remaining in regulation, but back-to-back buckets from Rawls trimmed that lead to 56-41 at 12:53. Four minutes later (8:28), Indianapolis pushed their advantage back to 63-43 on a layup from Tina Negoescu. The Greyhounds continued to hold sway at 68-50 with just 4:10 remaining, but LMU cut it back to 70-60 by the 1:45 mark with a 10-2 run. A Carly Lythjohan trey and two Costello free throws effectively ended any chance of an LMU comeback, putting the Greyhounds out to a 75-60 lead with less than a minute left.
 
Kelly Walter and Sarah Costello led the Greyhounds in scoring with 23 and 19 points, respectively. Walter hit five three-pointers, while Costello added five assists and a pair of steals. Carly Lythjohan chipped in with nine points, six rebounds and three blocks. Indianapolis shot 45.8 percent from the field with a 9-for-19 mark from long range.
 
The Lady Railsplitters fell to 0-3 all-time against Indianapolis, who defeated Lincoln Memorial 84-50 the last time the two teams met in Nicoson Hall in 2008.
 
Lincoln Memorial will break for the holidays before returning to the court on Saturday, January 3 to square off against the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears in Hickory, N.C. Tip-off in that contest is scheduled for 2 p.m.