HUNTINGTON – Grace’s women’s basketball team secured its third straight win courtesy of a 72-70 upset of No. 22 Huntington on Wednesday.

The Lady Lancers (8-5, 3-1 Crossroads League) moved into second place in the league standings with the road victory.

Darian Patton tied a career-best with 20 points to lead all players, including a pair of late free throws to help clinch the win.

Grace led for much of the first quarter, aided by six points from Haley Richardson.

The Foresters (7-4, 2-2 CL) adjusted in the second quarter and outscored Grace by eight; Huntington led 34-28 at halftime.

The third quarter was pivotal for Grace. The Lady Lancers’ offense erupted for 24 points as Grace’s consistent attacks at the basket began to pay dividends. Grace slashed its way by Huntington’s perimeter throughout the quarter, hitting 56 percent from the floor.

The Lady Lancers’ momentum continued into the start of the fourth quarter as Grace scored on its first three possessions. Brooke Sugg capped off Grace’s spurt with back-to-back 3-pointers, giving Grace a six-point lead and forcing Huntington to burn a timeout.

The Foresters responded with eight straight points to retake the lead at 62-60, but Vironnica Drake buried a corner 3-pointer to give Grace the lead for good with 5:26 remaining.

Kelsie Peterson helped give Grace a cushion, converting an and-1 and then burying a triple to extend the Lady Lancers’ lead to 69-63 with 2:30 on the clock.

Huntington proved its ranking by refusing to go down easy. The Foresters scored two quick buckets and had a chance to tie the game with a minute to play but missed on a jump shot.

On Grace’s next possession, the Lady Lancers misfired but grabbed two offensive rebounds to take valuable time off the clock. Huntington was forced to foul three times to get Grace on the foul line with seven seconds to play.

Darian Patton proceeded to hit both free throws to extend Grace’s lead to four.

The Foresters buried a deep 3-pointer to make it a one-point game with three seconds to play. Kelsie Peterson hit 1-of-2 from the foul line for the final margin of victory. Huntington missed on a desperation 3-pointer as the final buzzer sounded.

Patton made 7-of-10 from the floor for her 20 points, adding three rebounds and three assists. Drake scored 14 points with three boards, and Peterson added 13 points and five rebounds.

Richardson produced 12 points and seven rebounds, and Sugg tallied nine points with a trio of 3-pointers.

Grace outrebounded Huntington 36-26 overall. Grace’s aggressiveness also paid off with 22 trips to the free throw line compared to just five for Huntington.

The Lady Lancers will end the week with a trip to NCAA Div. I Valparaiso on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.