FORT WAYNE, Ind. — The Wright State women's basketball team fell to Purdue Fort Wayne 95-82 on Thursday evening inside the Gates Sports Center.
WSU (5-22, 4-13 HL) had four players reach double-figure scoring, led by
Emily Chapman with 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting and a 3-of-6 mark on 3-pointers. The Proctorville, Ohio native added a season-high eight assists and three rebounds.
Isabelle Bolender and
Bryce Nixon totaled 16 points and four threes apiece, while
Kacee Baumhower finished with 13 points and five assists.
Wright State shot an impressive 58.5 percent (31-of-53) from the field, highlighted by a 57.1% (16-of-28) clip on 3-pointers. Both were the second-highest marks through 27 games this season.
Purdue Fort Wayne (11-16, 8-9 HL) held its own by going 51.7% (30-of-58) from the field and 58.8% (10-of-17) from beyond the arc, while edging the Raiders in free throw makes (25-4) and rebounding (31-19). WSU was also bested 16-4 in points off turnovers and 15-3 on second-chance points.
The Raiders faced a narrow 47-46 halftime deficit, as both teams came out firing offensively. WSU made eight of its first nine 3-point attempts in the half and finished 10-of-13 (76.9%) from deep in the period. Chapman had 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting, while Bolender and Nixon poured in nine points apiece on a trio of 3-pointers.
PFW pushed its lead to 53-50 with 7:00 to go in the third quarter, but Wright State responded with a 15-4 scoring spurt to go up 65-57 at the 2:20 minute mark of the period. WSU's advantage was minimized to 65-63 as Purdue Fort Wayne closed the period on a 6-0 run.
The 'Dons opened the fourth quarter on a 15-2 run, resulting in an 81-67 Raider deficit with 4:51 left in the game. Wright State trailed by double figures for the remainder of the period, sealing the loss.
Baumhower scored 11 of her 13 total points over the last two quarters, while Nixon and Bolender added seven points apiece. PFW finished 21-of-27 (77.8%) on free throws in the second half.
Wright State will finalize its regular-season road schedule on Saturday, February 18, at Cleveland State. The conference matchup is set for a 2 p.m. start on ESPN3.
