UE women’s basketball suffers 64-58 loss to Bellarmine

The Purple Aces outrebounded their opponents for the second straight game and third time all season

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – A cold fourth quarter doomed the University of Evansville women’s basketball team in a 64-58 loss to the Bellarmine Knights.

After leading for most of the game, the Purple Aces couldn’t find their offense in the fourth quarter to prevent a Bellarmine comeback. Only two players reached double-figures for UE sisters Alana Striverson and Kynidi Mason Striverson. Graduate center Barbora Tomancova also had a strong night for Evansville, leading the team with 12 rebounds while adding nine points and a steal.

“It’s super disappointing,” said Head Coach Robyn Scherr-Wells following the loss. “We played three really solid quarters and saved the worst one for last. It’s tough, we had a nine-point lead opening the fourth quarter with the ball. And two turnovers led to two scores and we gave up a bunch of offensive boards in the fourth quarter. We just didn’t finish the game and it’s a tough pill to swallow,”.

The first two minutes of the game were controlled by the Knights but the Aces quickly responded midway through the first quarter. A nine-point run gave UE the lead, which they would hold onto for over 30 minutes. Evansville saw its lead grow to seven in the final 20 seconds of the frame as a free throw from forward Tameshia Dozier made it a 20-13 game.

Unlike the dominant runs of the first quarter, the second was a bucket-for-bucket marathon. The two teams matched each other shot for shot outside of a brief four-point run for the Knights. Neither offense could find a basket in the final two minutes of the first half as the Aces headed into the locker room with a 31-26 lead.

UE opened scoring in the third quarter with a three-pointer from Striverson on the left wing. While the junior guard found the first points, it was again mostly a back-and-forth battle early in the third. Evansville put together a four-point run at the 6:46 mark to go back up by nine. Bellarmine tried to chip away at the lead but the Aces continued to string together shots and grew their lead to 10 in the final 30 seconds. A last-second layup from the Knights made it an eight-point game with a quarter to go.

Bellarmine quickly cut into UE’s lead in the fourth with a seven-point run to make it only a one-point game. Evansville wouldn’t make its first basket until over two minutes in as forward Maggie Hartwig had a second chance layup. The game bounced back and forth between a three-point lead and a one-point lead for the Aces. But a six-point run for the Knights with four minutes to go sealed UE’s fate as they lost to Bellarmine 64-58.

For the second game in a row, Evansville outrebounded its opponent with 50 boards. The Aces also accumulated more second-chance points and bench points than the Knights through 40 minutes.

UE travels to Martin, Tennessee for their first Saturday game of the season against the UT Martin Skyhawks. Tip-off from the Kathleen and Tom Elam Center is set for 1 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 2.