Tahlequah got a game-high 16 points from freshman forward Faith Springwater, but the Class 5A No. 6 Lady Tigers came up short in a 43-33 loss to 4A, 12th-ranked Grove Tuesday in Metro Lakes Conference play Tuesday night. Tahlequah, now 12-6 overall and 6-3 in conference games under head coach David Qualls, struggled to find any offense in the second quarter and couldn't catch up to the Lady Ridgerunners, who improve to 14-2 and 8-1. Freshman guard Lydia McAlvain had the Lady Tigers' lone field goal in the second, and Springwater added three free throws, but THS found itself down 22-13 at the break. Springwater, who scored six of her points in the opening quarter, added five during the third. The Lady Tigers went into the final eight minutes trailing 31-23. Junior forward Kloe Bowin finished with six points, senior guard Taya Green followed with five, senior guard Alli Stayathome had four, and McAlvain closed with two. Grove received a team-high 14 points from Rory Greer. Qualls' team will return to the TMAC for the first time since Jan. 15 when it hosts 5A, No. 5 Coweta (13-5, 8-1) on Friday. The Lady Tigers fell on the road to Coweta, 54-50, on Dec. 11.