University Park, Pa. – The Fordham women's basketball team fell, 72-59, at Penn State on Wednesday night despite junior
Kendell Heremaia's career-high 19 points. With the result, the Rams fall to 0-3 on the season, while the Lady Lions improve to 2-1.
"We took some steps forward from our Columbia game," Head coach
Stephanie Gaitley said, "But with our schedule, we need to be ready to play for 40 minutes to get back on track."
Heremaia poured in 19 points on 7-of-17 shooting, including a career-best five three-pointers on 11 attempts, to go with six rebounds and a team-high three assists over 34 minutes.
Kaitlyn Downey, coming off the bench, added 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting, hitting 4-of-6 from behind the arc to match her personal-high for long-range makes. She added two boards, assists, and steals over 20 minutes.
Fordham's 7-6 lead midway through the opening period was its last of the evening, with Downey's first triple tying the game at 10 moments later. However, not long after, Kamaria McDaniel's first make at the free-throw line put the hosts ahead for good, who closed the first quarter on a 6-2 run.
It took nearly four minutes for either team to get on the scoreboard in the second frame; McDaniel's layup prompted a timeout from Gaitley. Downey answered an Anna Camden three and a triple by
Anna DeWolfe got the Rams within three, 21-18, but McDaniel answered again with one of her own on the other end. The two schools again traded long-range buckets, this time it was Heremaia and Camden, to maintain that six-point cushion, 27-21. Fordham was held to just one basket – a
Bre Cavanaugh three with just under two minutes to go – for the remainder of the half, but its defense also held the Lady Lions to just one basket, as well, trailing by five at the intermission, 29-24.
Penn State began to pull away in the third, beginning the second half on a 21-8 run over the first six-and-a-half minutes, hitting all six of its attempts from the field and 7-of-10 from the line. The Rams shot 3-of-7 during that stretch but also committed four turnovers. With the Lady Lions holding their largest lead of the night, 50-32, with 3:29 to play, the Rams rallied with an 8-3 run thanks to four offensive rebounds and a steal, capped by a Heremaia three to push past her previous career-high, 51-40, but McDaniel was able to get a last-second jumper to fall just five seconds later.
Fordham began the fourth quarter well with five quick points on an
Anna DeWolfe steal and score, a
Sarah Karpell layup, and a free throw from
Megan Jonassen to get within eight, 53-45. Following a Penn State offensive board, Camden drained another three to briefly push the lead back into double digits. Jonassen hauled in another offensive rebound and put it back in to get within nine but a Shay Hagans quick basket put the advantage back into double figures for good.
The Rams hit 44.4% of 27 three-point attempts on the night but just 10-of-35 inside the arc, while the Lady Lions converted on 53.2% opportunities from the floor. Fordham had 15 more shots on the night thanks to 18 offensive rebounds, compared to 12 defensive boards. Penn State was also 15-of-21 from the charity stripe, while Fordham was 3-of-4.
After Downey and Heremaia, Cavanaugh and DeWolfe each chipped in nine points on a combined 7-of-27 shooting. DeWolfe added four boards, two assists, and a steal, while Cavanaugh had three rebounds and a pair of dimes over a team-high 38 minutes. Karpell contributed five points on 2-of-3 shooting plus two boards and her first career block, while Jonassen hauled in six of her eight rebounds on the offensive side before fouling out after 25 minutes off the bench.
Katie McLoughlin also recorded a career-high two steals, plus two boards, in nine minutes.
Fordham will next host Villanova at the Rose Hill Gym this Sunday afternoon at 5 p.m.
