NORTHFIELD, Minn. - The Martin Luther College women's basketball team was unable to keep pace late in a 68-42 loss at St. Olaf on Tuesday.

The Knights battled the Oles early, but still trailed 33-24 at the half.

MLC started strong in the second half and cut the deficit in half (39-33) with four minutes to play in the third quarter, but the Oles used an 18-2 run over the next nine minutes to put the game away.

The Knights played their best defensive game of the season, holding the Oles to 38.8 percent from the field and 26.3 percent (5-19) from beyond three-point arc, but were unable to capitalize on the offensive end. MLC shot 28.8 overall for the game, and missed its last five attempts from downtown after starting the game 6-15 from distance.

Emily Witkowski led the Knights with 14 points and added four assists. Faith Otte scored nine points, while Kati Aguilar tied Witkowski for the team lead with four assists. Ruth Buchholz led MLC with six rebounds. 

MLC fell to 0-4 on the season in defeat. St. Olaf improved to 1-3 with the win.

The Knights will return to action on Monday, November 26, when they travel to Viterbo for a game scheduled to tip off at 5 p.m.