Moon Township, Pa. – The Fordham women's basketball team never let up but ultimately fell to hot-shooting Duquesne on Tuesday night inside Robert Morris' UPMC Center. With the loss, the Rams fall to 18-10 overall and 10-5 in Atlantic 10 play, while the Dukes improve to 18-10 and 8-7, respectively.
"Disappointed with our defensive effort tonight," Head coach
Stephanie Gaitley said, "Time to learn and fight back. We will be ready for Saturday!"
The Rams led for the majority of the first quarter and off-and-on in the second, but remained within striking distance throughout the game until the Dukes went off for 31 points in the fourth quarter on 11-of-16 shooting, 3-of-4 from deep, and 6-of-6 from the line, amassing as large as a 13-point lead late. Fordham had cut the deficit to one point, 43-42, at the beginning of the fourth quarter and again got within three, 50-47, midway through the period, but the Dukes ripped off a 12-4 run over the next 90 seconds to pull away.
Nina Aho and Angela Staffileno each hit a triple over the first two-plus minutes to stake the Dukes to a quick 6-2 lead. Following an offensive rebound by
Kaitlyn Downey,
Bre Cavanaugh drilled a three while being fouled by Staffileno, converting the rare four-point play to tie the game up. Cavanaugh and Downey went back-to-back with makes inside the arc to take a 10-6 lead. After Paige Cannon converted a jumper, Duquesne head coach Dan Burt called an early timeout, turning into the media, with two minutes left.
Anna DeWolfe grabbed an offensive board and laid it back up to make it a four-point game, but the Dukes closed on a 5-0 run to hold a slim 13-12 lead heading to the second period.
Duquesne started the second off with six unanswered points, all inside the paint, before
Kendell Heremaia found
Vilisi Tavui for an easy lay-in with 6:51 to go. With the score 23-17 with five minutes to play and coming out of the media timeout, the Rams rattled off a 7-0 run to take a brief one-point lead, 24-23. Cavanaugh hit two free throws and a jumper, while Heremaia knocked down a three. However, Amaya Hamilton tilted the score back in her team's favor with a jumper and Libby Bazelak push the lead to three 30 seconds later, 27-24, heading into the intermission.
Heremaia got Fordham within one on two occasions, first with a three and then with a jumper over the first four-plus minutes. The two schools traded baskets the rest of the frame with the Dukes holding a slim 9-8 advantage and taking a four-point lead, 43-39, into the final 10 minutes. The fourth quarter started off brightly for the Rams as DeWolfe saw Cavanaugh's shot carom directly to her on the wing and the freshman buried a trey to put the visitors within one. The Dukes quickly scored seven straight points over the next minute to force Fordham into using a timeout. Out of the break, Downey hit a three and, after some solid defense, Cavanaugh drew the Rams within three, 50-47, with a jumper at the 5:35 mark. A three by Paige Cannon sparked the Dukes' big run and they were leading by double figures shortly thereafter.
Cavanaugh led the way offensively for the Rams, scoring 23 points with nine rebounds, an assist, and a steal over 40 minutes, her seventh straight time playing the entire game and 12
th game of 20 points or more in league action. DeWolfe nearly notched her second 20-point effort, finishing with 19 points, three rebounds, and a team-high three assists. Heremaia recorded her sixth double-double of the year with 10 points and 10 rebounds, adding two assists and two steals. Downey,
Megan Jonassen, and Tavui combined for 11 points to round out the scoring. Tavui also chipped in a block and a steal in 15 minutes off the bench.
The Rams shot 31.6% from the floor and 24.0% from behind the arc, while Duquesne shot an even 50.0% and 35.7%, respectively, while also hitting 15-of-19 from the line. Both teams hauled in 38 rebounds. Fordham committed just four turnovers, a new season-low and tied for the third-fewest all-time in a single contest.
Fordham finishes up the regular season by hosting Saint Joseph's this Saturday at 2 p.m., coinciding with Alumnae Day.
