Queen’s Golden Gaels gave the No. 1-ranked team in Canada all it could handle Friday night, but they still dropped an 89-81 decision to the Windsor Lancers in Ontario University Athletics women’s basketball play in Windsor.

There were 16 lead changes in the game between last year’s conference finalists. The teams were tied 37-37 at halftime and Queen’s took a 61-60 lead into the fourth quarter.

The Lancers, getting a three-point basket from Andrea Kiss on their first possession of the final period, scored the first eight points of the quarter and essentially played the Gaels even after that.

Queen’s got within one point midway through the quarter, 72-71, and drew to within four points at 85-81 when Jenny Wright completed a three-point play with 47 seconds left, but the subsequent possession, the Lancers took 18 seconds off the shot clock before Jocelyn LaRocque drained a three-point basket that, for all intents and purposes, ended things.

Wright finished with a game-best 21 points, while Liz Boag scored 17 and Andrea Priamo scored 14 and grabbed eight rebounds for the Gaels, who lost for the second game in a row to fall to 8-5.

Korissa Williams, with 20 points, LaRocque, with 18, and Kiss, with 17, led the four-time defending national champion Lancers. Courtney VandeBovencamp added 12 points in 16 minutes off the Windsor bench.

The Gaels resume play Saturday night at Western. The Mustangs are 5-9, after beating York 69-54 Friday.

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The Queen’s men, meanwhile, allowed 90 points or more for the second game in a row—and the third time this year—as they lost to No. 5-ranked Windsor.

The Gaels led by a point after the first quarter but a 12-0 run propelled the Lancers into a 45-35 lead at halftime. With 29 points in the third quarter, the home team took a 12-point lead into the final period.

Back-to-back three-pointers by Patrick Street in the middle of the fourth quarter allowed the Gaels to get within nine points at 81-72, and a three-pointer by Tanner Graham with 1:28 left cut the deficit to six points at 91-85, but that was as close as the Gaels would get.

In losing for the fourth time in their last five games, Queen’s, 4-9, got 25 points from Greg Faulkner, 19 from Street and 12 points apiece from Graham and Mike Mullins. The Gaels committed 22 turnovers, which Windsor turned into 26 points.

Mitch Farrell led the Lancers with 24 points, while Rotimi Osuntola scored 17 points and pulled down a game-best 12 rebounds as Windsor improved to 8-4.

The male Gaels also resume play Saturday night at Western.