TIFFIN -- The Heidelberg University Women's Basketball team entered the Thanksgiving break with a 78-70 loss to Bluffton University on Tuesday.  The fall pushed HU back to .500 at 2-2.  

Chloe Gilbert tallied a career-high 25 points and dished out four assists in the loss. Amari Slaughter also had a career-best day, scoring 17 points on 7-of-13 from the field. 

Cheyanne Bean obliterated her previous career high in rebounds, grabbing 18 boards to go along with 15 points -- tallying her second double-double of the season.

Bluffton (1-3) shot 38.9% from the floor and didn't turn the ball over in the first quarter, building an 18-11 advantage after the opening 10 minutes. 

A jumper from Ashley Ballard and a 3-pointer and jumper by Chloe Gilbert allowed Heidelberg to tie the game at 18 in the first 3:36 of the second period.  Bluffton responded out of a timeout with a 6-0 run to regain momentum.  

After Heidelberg whittled the Beaver lead down to two, the visitors enjoyed a five-point trip down to their end, thanks to an offensive rebound on a missed attempt at a three-point play.  Gilbert hit a running jumper in the closing seconds to send her team into the locker room down, 29-24.  

Slaughter came to life in the third, picking up 11 points. She scored seven consecutive points for Heidelberg, helping trim the deficit to three. The Student Princes were able to get within one on several occasions but were never able to take a lead.  

Gilbert had 12 points in the fourth quarter, but the Student Princes always seemed to be just out of reach. Bluffton's Olivia Zender and Kyla Columber each had seven in the final frame, helping the Beavers ward off The Berg.      

Both teams shot lights out from the free-throw line as Bluffton went 19-23 (82.6%) and Heidelberg 19-20 (95%). The Student Princes were perfect until the last 40 seconds of the game. Ironically, the last time HU made 19 free throws was against the Beavers last year when they shot 19-22, their best of the season. 


Gilbert's 25-point performance was the most for a Student Prince since Brooke Beamer poured in 27 points in a 64-62 loss to Wilmington on Feb. 27, 2021.  

After the break, Heidelberg returns to action on Wednesday. The team will travel to Hiram College (0-2) for a 6 p.m. tip.