LAKE WALES, Fla. – Although the Royals had one of the best first-half performances the team has had all season, Warner was unable to match their conference foe and fell to the Ave Maria Gyrenes 63-54.
 
After 1 quarter the Gyrenes held a 2-point lead, 15-13, despite a strong effort from the Royals. Avery Fogel scored 6 points, going 2-3 from deep in the quarter.
 
In the 2^nd quarter both teams stepped up their offense, scoring 22 each, as Warner went into the locker room still down by 2, 37-35.
 
D'Asia James came alive in the 2^nd quarter, going 4-4 from the field and 3-3 from the free-throw line to finish the half with 11 points. Avery Fogel lead the team with 12 points at halftime, after adding 2 more 3-pointers to her stat line.
 
Alana St. Clair and Azuree Pascal added 12 points combined the 1^st half to contribute to the Royals offensive attack.
 
Warner closed out the 1^st half shooting an outstanding 52% from the field, going 13-25.
 
The 2^nd half did not start how the Royals wanted it to, as they quickly found themselves down by 7, 45-38, with 4:30 left in the 3^rd quarter.
 
Ave Maria was able to hold onto their lead throughout the quarter, leading 49-43, as the two teams began the 4^th and final quarter.
 
The Royals were not able to overcome their deficit in the 4^th quarter, although they did make several good runs and cut the Gyrenes lead down to just 3 at one point but fell to Ave 63-54.
 
The Gyrenes defense shut down the Royals in the 2^nd half, holding them to just 23% shooting from the field in the 2^nd half, going 6-26 from the field.
 
Avery Fogel was held to 0 points in the half, while D'Asia James did her best to rally the Royals down the stretch, scoring a team-high 15 points, with 7 rebounds.
 
Alana St. Clair finished with 13 points and 6 rebounds, while Troi Grant was held to only 9 points and 5 rebounds.