EAU CLAIRE, Wisc. – The Trine University women's basketball team was defeated by the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire on Sunday afternoon 72-66.
The Blugold jumped out to a 15-point lead late in the third quarter before a comeback effort by the Thunder fell short in the closing minutes.
The loss is the first in the 2021-22 season for Trine, making them 4-1 overall. UWEC advances their record to 3-0.
Kelsy Taylor [Louisville, Ky. / New Albany] made a jump shot on the first possession of the game, but from there it was six straight points from the Blugold to take an early advantage. Halfway through the first quarter, UWEC extended the lead to double figures at 14-4 and went on to win the first 21-10.
Kayla Wildman [Rockford, Mich. / Rockford] scored the first four points of the second for Trine with a lay-up and a pair of free throws. A pair of lay-ups from Rachel Stewart [Pekin, Ind. / Eastern] cut further into the lead, but the Thunder still faced a 30-22 deficit at the intermission.
The teams traded shots like a heavyweight boxing match in the third, but eventually the Blugold were able to wear down Trine and the lead built all the way up to 15 at 51-36 with less than one minute remaining in the third quarter.
Alyssa Argyle [Freeland, Mich. / Freeland] knocked down a pair from the free throw line and Sophie Sloneker [Monroe, Ohio / Monroe] connected on a three from Sidney Wagner [Warsaw, Ind. / Tippecanoe Valley] to give Trine late life heading into the fourth.
Entering the period down 51-41, Stewart scored four consecutive points in the fourth to make it 51-45 with eight minutes to play. A three-point field goal from Tara Bieniewicz [Chesterfield, Mich. / Dakota] continued to surge the Thunder.
With less than five minutes remaining, Alyssa Argyle stepped to the free throw line with a chance to make it a one possession game. Down 58-54, Argyle made the first, but missed the second. Taylor was there for the offensive rebound and scored to get it the deficit down to just one.
Scoring with the clock stopped was key for Trine in the waning moments, with the combination of Stewart and Taylor netting six straight from the charity stripe. Taylor's tied the game at 63 with 2:13 to play.
Unfortunately, a score-stop-score sequence for UWEC put the Blugold back up by four points and free throw shooting at the end of the game sunk the Thunder 72-66.
Stewart set a new career scoring mark for the second time this season with 21 points off the bench. She also pulled down a team-high seven rebounds and was 6-for-8 from the field.
The Thunder continue their road trip after Thanksgiving at Ohio Northern University on Saturday, November 27. Tip-off for that road game is 3 pm.