MONTREAT, N.C. - CIU women's basketball entered the home stretch of their season, playing their final regular-season road contest against Montreat College (N.C.) Wednesday night. The Rams entered the game in hopes to continue their winning ways to earn a better seeding in the Appalachin Athletic Conference (AAC) Tournament. Unfortunately, CIU could not come out with the win against the Cavaliers, falling 79-71. The Rams drop to 13-15 overall and 11-12 in the AAC, with just one game remaining in the regular season. 

The Rams got off a fast start with a 23-12 advantage after the first quarter. Freshman guard Madison Hatcher was electric in the first quarter with 12 points going 3-of-4 from behind the arc. After that, however, the Rams would fall into a slump offensively, totaling just 10 points in the second quarter, and would trail by four at the break, 37-33.

CIU would begin to find their rhythm again in the third quarter, turning defensive stops into buckets on the other end. In the third quarter, the Rams forced seven turnovers, leading to easy scores to take a two-point lead into the fourth (53-51). Unfortunately, in the fourth quarter, the Rams were unable to get the stops down the stretch that they needed as they were upended by the Cavaliers. 

Madison Hatcher led the way in the points column for the Rams with an 18 point outing to go along with three steals. Zion Neat reached double-figures as well, with 11 points and four rebounds. Off the bench, Teneea Heston recorded 12 points with four assists and four rebounds. 

The Rams were outscored in the paint 46-28 and were outrebounded 57-39, which played a crucial part in Wednesday night's loss. Also, 22 of those 57 rebounds were offensive rebounds, resulting in 16 second-chance points. 

What Coach Danielle Fleming is saying: 
"Hard to win on the road when you give up 22 offensive rebounds! Didn't play hard enough to win." 

Up Next:
CIU will return home to close out the regular season against Bluefield (Va.) on Saturday, Feb. 19 at 2 PM.