The Ionia 8th grade girls hosted Olivet Wednesday night for Ionia's annual Purple Game.  The ladies put up a great fight, but fell just short 26-20.  

The Bulldogs got off to a slow start, trailing 9-1 after the first quarter.  With some great ball movement and communication, Ionia was able to score 6 points in the second quarter and was down 17-7 at halftime.  Ionia came out strong in the second half, scoring 9 points in the third quarter and holding Olivet to 7.  The Bulldogs made a strong comeback in the 4th quarter by hitting a couple of key free throws, but ultimately fell 26-20. 

The lady Bulldogs showed tremendous growth on the court, on both offense and defense.  Leading Ionia was Elle Lepley with 8 points and 5 steals, followed by Olivia Lemke with 6 points and 8 rebounds.  Ava Benedict recorded 4 points and 5 rebounds, while Miah Wittenback added 2 points and 4 rebounds.  Other contributions on the night came from Ash Ellsworth with 5 rebounds and Gena Rogers with 4.

The Bulldogs fell to 0-4 on the season.  Their next game will be on Monday, February 5 as they host the visitors from Waverly.