HENRICO, VA. – Strong play in the final three quarters of Thursday morning's second round action of the 2025 Atlantic 10 Championship saw No. 8 Fordham University Women's Basketball fall to No. 9 Duquesne, 79-63 at the Henrico Sports and Events Center.
The Rams pulled down 10 offensive rebounds in the first quarter alone, but would trail 28-7 after one. Winning two of the final three frames, Fordham outscored Duquesne 56-51 in the final three quarters, including 28 points in the fourth quarter.
Irene Murua tallied a double-double with 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting along with 12 rebounds on the afternoon to lead the Rams, joined in double figures by Taylor Donaldson who added 18 points and eight rebounds, along with five steals.
Duquesne broke out of the gates with a 15-4 run in the first five minutes of the contest, continuing to pour it out of the media timeout, leading 28-7 after one quarter of play.
Sinking their first two shots to open the second period, Fordham found its footing a bit, shooting 40% in the frame, including 4-of-7 from beyond the arc, but the Dukes remained relentless, matching nearly every Fordham shot, to keep a 20-point cushion at the half.
Opening the second half on an 8-0 run, Duquesne took control of the third quarter, outscoring the Rams 16-7 in the frame, and continued to stretch their advantage throughout the second half, leading 64-35 heading to the fourth.
A resurgent fourth quarter by the Maroon and White saw Fordham score 28 points in the final ten minutes, including a 9-0 run in the closing seconds, but were outlasted by the Dukes, 79-63.
Fordham ends the year 15-15 overall (9-9 A-10), improving on their win total from a year ago, with Bridgette Mitchell ending her second year at the helm with 27 victories, the fourth most wins ever by a women's basketball head coach in their first two years with the program.
