Box Score Dodge City women's basketball struggled to finish offensively on the road in a Top 15 battle as #14 Butler got the better of the Conquistadors 72-58. 

The loss is the first of the season for the Conqs, moving them to 14-1 on the season and 9-1 in KJCCC action as they are now tied atop the KJCCC standings with Butler. 

The Conqs opened the day with a three-pointer from Jolie Mantz to lead 3-0, and then it was tied 5-5 but the Grizzlies of Butler then worked to an 11-5 advantage. At the end of the first quarter, the Conqs, despite a slow start, trailed just 15-12. The second stanza started with an 11-3 run over the first four plus minutes, leading to Butler having a double-figure lead at 26-15. and a 20-13 second quarter saw the Conqs trail 35-25 at intermission. Butler opened the second half on a 6-0 run, and by the end of the 10 minutes, the Conqs found themselves down 22 late in the third. Conqs tried to chip away at the deficit in the fourth, but it was too much, falling 72-58 on the road. 

Conqs shot just 35.5% from the field in the loss, struggling to get the offense rolling. The Conqs were out rebounded by 11 and had 14 turnovers, while Butler shot 48.4%. 

Mantz led the Conqs in the loss, finishing with 18 points along with five rebounds and three assists, while both Manuela Piljevic and Savi Mi each chipped in 11 points. Piljevic grabbed five rebounds, while Mi had six assists and four rebounds.

Next week will wrap up the first run through KJCCC play as the Conqs will take on Independence on Wednesday, January 14th, on the road and then be back at home against Seward County on Saturday, January 17th.