Case Western Reserve University senior guard Sarah Mitchell recorded career highs with 22 points and six steals, but it was not enough for the Spartans, who suffered a 64-59 loss at the University of Chicago on Friday night.

The loss came in spite of the fact that the Spartans held a lead for the majority of the game, playing ahead for over 23 minutes of Friday night's contest. CWRU fell to 8-9 overall, dropping below .500 for the first time since November 26, with a 1-5 UAA record. Chicago improved to 11-6 with a 4-2 UAA record.

It was a career night for Mitchell, who made a career-high nine shots on 15 attempts and added five rebounds and three assists. Senior forward Kayla Characklis added 12 points and seven rebounds, while graduate student forward Kate Montgomery added 10 points and seven rebounds.

The Spartans led for all but three minutes of the first half and trailed for just 31 seconds, as CWRU went on to take a 27-24 lead by halftime. A three by first-year guard Mya Hartjes with 7:49 left in the first period put the Spartans up 5-4, and CWRU remained ahead for the remainder of the quarter. Hartjes went on to score eight points in the first period, including a layup with 4:03 to go that put CWRU in front by seven, 16-9, and the Spartans went on to take a 17-15 lead into the second period. Chicago opened the second quarter with a three to take the lead back, but a pair of free throws by Montgomery put the Spartans back in front 19-18 with 9:18 to play, and CWRU once again never trailed in the period, leading by as many as four points and going ahead 27-24 by halftime.

Sophomore guard/forward Emily Plachta opened the second half with a three to extend the Spartans' lead to six, 30-24. Chicago battled back to go in front by a point, 35-34, with 5:03 remaining in the frame, and went ahead by three with 1:32 left, before Montgomery evened the score with a long-range shot. However, the Maroons connected on another three late in the quarter to break a tie and take a three-point lead, 45-42, heading into the final period.

Chicago took a five-point lead early in the fourth, but a 6-0 run by the Spartans, including back-to-back layups from Mitchell, put CWRU back in front 48-47 with 7:12 to play. Chicago responded with five straight points of its own to go back in front and would be able to hold a lead for the remainder of the game. CWRU trimmed the lead back to a point twice on baskets by Characklis with 3:31 left which made the score 54-53 and with 2:30 remaining that made it a 56-55 game. However, a 6-0 run by Chicago gave the Maroons a game-high seven-point lead with just 28 seconds left, putting the game out of reach for the Spartans.

The Spartans will wrap up their four-game road swing on Sunday afternoon when the team travels to St. Louis for a 3:00 p.m. ET tipoff against WashU.