DAYTON — The Wright State women's basketball program could not sustain an early double-digit lead, as Purdue Fort Wayne pulled away for a 72-55 win over the Raiders on Sunday afternoon at the Nutter Center.

WSU (2-18, 1-9 HL) had three players score in double figures, led by Emily Chapman with 15 points on 5-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc. Kacee Baumhower finished with 13 points, three rebounds, and three assists, while Bryce Nixon totaled 12 points on four 3-pointers.

Cara Vankempen pulled down a season-high eight rebounds in addition to WSU's lone block of the Horizon League contest. Makiya Miller, Baumhower, and Nixon recorded multiple steals to help the Raiders' defensive efforts.

Wright State shot 38.5 percent overall (20-of-52), including 11-of-34 (32.4%) on threes. The Raiders were limited to just four free throws, making each attempt.

The Mastodons (7-13, 4-6 HL) bested WSU by shooting 45.3% (24-of-53) from the field, highlighted by 13 3-pointers on 24 attempts (54.2%). PFW also led the rebounding battle 37-25 and turned 13 WSU turnovers into 19 points.

Wright State raced out to a 13-0 lead in the opening quarter, thanks to a trio of 3-pointers by Nixon and a pair of layups by Baumhower. Purdue Fort Wayne was held scoreless until the 4:45 minute mark of the first and made just three field goals over the 10-minute span. The Raiders led 15-8 at the end of the first quarter, despite being limited to just two points over the last five minutes of the period.

The momentum swayed to Purdue Fort Wayne, as the visiting team outscored WSU 39-25 in the second quarter, resulting in a 37-30 halftime deficit for the Raiders. PFW went 11-of-14 (78.6%) from the field and 5-of-6 (83.3%) on 3-pointers in the quarter, while Wright State was held to 41.7% (5-of-12) shooting.

Chapman scored the Raiders' first nine points of the third quarter to cut their deficit down to 42-39 with 6:24 left. The teams exchanged 7-0 runs to close the quarter, making the score 49-46 in favor of PFW.

Baumhower opened the final quarter with a layup to reduce WSU's deficit to one point, 49-48. However, PFW responded with an 11-0 run to build its edge to 60-48 with 7:10 left in the fourth. The 'Dons prevented a late comeback, as they led by double digits for the remainder of the game.

Wright State will continue its conference schedule on Thursday, January 26, at Youngstown State.