Women’s Basketball Falls in Season Opener at JMU

Thursday, November 8

Harrisonburg, Va.

7 p.m.

George Washington University

0-1

James Madison

1-0

George Washington

James Madison

11/8/2018 10:16:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Bautista tallies 10 points, five steals and four assists

HARRISONBURG, Va. – GW women's basketball showcased a valiant defensive effort on Thursday night against CAA preseason favorite James Madison, but ultimately came up short in a 50-37 setback at the Convocation Center.

Defense ruled the day as neither offense was able to get on track. The Colonials (0-1) held JMU (1-0) to 38.5 percent (20-52) from the field, but only connected on 12-of-51 shots (23.5) on their end. The Dukes hit five triples to the Colonials' three.

"Obviously, we're disappointed in the loss," head coach Jennifer Rizzotti said. "We knew coming down here this would be a big test for our team. I thought defensively we were actually in a much better place than we were at this time last year."

Sophomore Neila Luma paced the Colonials with 11 points and five rebounds in 29 minutes. Senior Mei-Lyn Bautista started her final campaign in the Buff & Blue with 10 points, five steals, four assists and just one turnover.

Neither team was able to get much traction offensively in the first half. The Colonials found themselves on the wrong end of a 10-0 run to open the game, but whittled the deficit to three at 18-15 midway through the second quarter on a three from senior Kelsi Mahoney.

During the stretch, GW held JMU without a point for over six minutes and forced nine straight misses from the Dukes.

JMU pushed its lead back to seven at the break (24-17) and started the second half with a 7-0 run to take its largest lead at 31-17. Once again, though, GW worked its way back into the contest, this time on the back of Bautista. The senior point guard took matters into her own hands, scoring eight straight points for the Colonials to shrink the deficit to 39-33 after three quarters.

GW forced three straight turnovers to begin the fourth quarter, but wasn't able to take advantage. JMU scored seven of the first eight points in the frame and never led by fewer than six as they held on for the win.

First-year Kayla Mokwuah made her presence known in her first career action with five points, two rebounds and a block. Five different Colonials made their Buff & Blue debut on Thursday night, including redshirt-sophomore Sarah Overcash, who earned the start at forward.

GW turns its attention to its home opener on Sunday at 2 p.m. against Princeton. Prior to the game, the Colonials will honor the accomplishments of the 2017-18 squad with a banner unveiling and ring ceremony.