COLUMBIA, S.C. - CIU Women's Basketball hosted Carolina University (N.C.) Monday night following a season-opening nail-biter win over Morris College on Saturday. The Bruins took an early lead, and the Rams couldn't bounce back, resulting in an 83-58 loss. CIU is now 1-1 on the season and has one more contest to settle in before Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) play begins.  

Carolina quickly took a seven-point advantage, but Alayna Watkins's three-point shot propelled the Rams to a 9-7 lead at the 4:31 mark. The Bruins went back ahead until Mariah Leinbach evened the score 12-12 with another three-pointer. Carolina then dominated with a 39-11 run, securing a 28-point lead as they headed into halftime.

Leinbach scratched at this lead with a jumper (7:28), followed by two points from the charity stripe from Daja Taylor. In the third quarter, the Rams managed to keep the scoring close, with a 19-15 point difference, although they still found themselves trailing by 32 points as they entered the final quarter. CIU had a game-high of 20 points in the fourth, led by Leinbach with eight and Taylor with six, but it was not enough to bridge the gap against Carolina's advantage. 

Once again, Leinbach led the way with 20 points after going 9-9 from the line. Taylor and Aubriella Harris also found themselves in double digits, with 11 and 10, respectively. Keniah Watkins and Harris were impressive on the glass, with 15 combined rebounds. The Rams struggled from the field, only converting 19 of their 69 attempts.

Up Next: CIU is on the road for the first time this season, heading to West Point, Ga. to take on Point University on Wednesday, Nov. 1 at 5:30 p.m.