Feb. 28, 2008

Fairborn, Ohio - Host Wright State used a 10-4 run to open the second half to take the lead and Loyola could not get over the hump, dropping a tight 64-57 decision to Wright State tonight at the Nutter Center. Keisha Collins led three Ramblers in double figures with 15 points.

Both teams got off to sluggish starts offensively and Loyola did not dent the scoreboard until Shannon Finnegan scored on a put-back almost five minutes into the game. Finnegan was effective in the early going, scoring LU's first five points, but LaShawna Thomas was the story, scoring nine points as the Raiders jumped out to a 13-5 lead. Maggie McCloskey knocked down two straight threes to pull LU within two and, after a Jessica Hylton trey, the Ramblers pulled even at 16 on a pair of Brittany Boeke free throws. Loyola maintain its aggressiveness on the offensive end on took a 27-22 lead on a Boeke drive and bucket with 48 seconds left before settling for a 27-26 halftime lead.

Wright State put Loyola on its heels in the early minutes of the second half, knocking down four of its first six shots to race out to a 36-31 lead. The Ramblers were forced to play catch-up the rest of the way and their deficit hovered between three and six points for a majority of the half. Mounting foul trouble hurt as Wright State was able to get into the bonus and convert at the stripe to answer each LU charge. Two Keisha Collins lay-ups keyed the Ramblers' last spurt and they had the ball down four with a minute remaining. However, they could not convert and WSU iced the game from the line.

After shooting in 35 and 38%, respectively, in the first half, both teams shot better than 50% in the second period, but Wright State earned 23 trips to the line in the period (with 15 makes) to earn the win.

Collins led the way for Loyola with 15 points and was joined in double figures by Cierra Thurman (12 points, five boards) and Boeke (10 points). Thomas, who finished 11 of 13 from the floor, led all scorers with 24 points.

Loyola returns to action on Saturday when it takes on Detroit in its final road contest of the regular season.