While they would have preferred a weekend sweep, the Nipissing Lakers women's basketball team will settle for a split.

Coming off a big win Friday, the Lakers were unable to make it two in a row, as they fell 71-44 to the Guelph Gryphons on home court Saturday night.

After a strong first start and opening quarter that saw the Lakers down just five, Nipissing turned things around and held a 19-17 lead early in the second quarter.

A late push in the first half from the Gryphons put them back in front and up nine at halftime.

Leading 32-23 entering the third quarter, Guelph took control of the game and basically secured their victory by the end of the third.

Nipissing managed just four points, while Guelph scored 25 to go up 57-27 after 30 minutes of play.

The Lakers refused to quit and their energy level remained high, with the bench encouraging and cheering on their teammates battling on the court, but it was too little and too late.

Outscoring Guelph in the final quarter 17-14 gave Nipissing a positive to take into a week of practice, but in the end, they came up short, losing to a strong Gryphons team.

Devanee Dewey had a solid game offensively, leading the way with 13 points while Natalie Martinez added seven in Saturday's matchup.

They hit the road next weekend to close out the semester, facing Windsor and Western.