LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Bellarmine University women's basketball team got cooking inside the final minute but ultimately the late run that Wisconsin-Parkside put together led to the Knights' demise in a 63-58 setback on Saturday afternoon in Knights Hall.

With 5:51 remaining in the Great Lakes Valley Conference contest, junior guard Mariah Gador followed a basket by freshman forward Beth Bowers with a pair of free throws for a 48-43 advantage for the Knights (8-9, 3-6 GLVC).

From there, Wisconsin-Parkside (14-4, 7-2) asserted itself, taking control of the game with a 10-0 run sparked by Brittney Fair. She pickpocketed a Knights ball handler for a layup and then intercepted a pass for another score as the Rangers surged ahead. Fair scored eight of her 12 points in the second half, with her jumper increasing the lead to 55-48 with 2:12 left.

Bellarmine was down nine when it made a last-gasp push in the final minute. Sophomore guard Whitney Hartlage sank a jumper and 3-pointer and freshman guard Raven Merriweather drilled a trifecta as the Knights cut their deficit to one possession with 15 seconds left. However, Kristin Conniff, who had a game-high 19 points, canned a pair of free throws to clinch the Rangers' seventh straight victory. Conniff was 10 of 11 from the charity stripe.

"They're a very good team, and I thought we played hard enough to win, we just didn't execute well enough to win," BU Coach Chancellor Dugan said.

Senior forward Morgan Clemons paced Bellarmine with a season-high 17 points and nine rebounds, while Bowers added 14 points, seven boards and three steals. Sophomore guard Destony Curry collected four steals.

Both teams shot below 40 percent, but Wisconsin-Parkside won the rebounding battle 54-37 and racked up 24 offensive boards. Bellarmine hung tight behind exceptional accuracy from the free throw line, as the Knights hit 16 of their 19 attempts for an 84.2 percent clip. Clemons was the only Knight to miss but had significantly more attempts than her teammates, sinking a rock-solid 7 of 10.

In the first half, Bellarmine seized a 13-7 lead nearly halfway through the frame. Curry, Clemons, Bowers and junior center Jennifer Smith all nailed jump shots for the Knights. Wisconsin-Parkside knotted it up with five minutes before the intermission and owned a five-point advantage at the break. Clemons had a huge first half for BU with 11 points and seven rebounds.

"When we were running our offense and making good passes, I think everybody was aggressive and looking to score," Dugan said. "We just, for whatever reason, get into lulls and it is one pass and a shot. We have to get ourselves out of that."

Bellarmine will play two games on the road next week. The Knights compete at 6:30 p.m. (ET) on Thursday at Illinois Springfield and at 2 p.m. on Saturday at McKendree.

BOX SCORE (HTM)