COLUMBIA - CIU women's basketball (4-19, 3-18 AAC) held a halftime lead, but a third-quarter surge from Columbia College (S.C.) was too much to overcome as the Rams dropped Saturday's Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) contest 63-55. With less than five miles between the two institutions, the Koalas are the Ram's most common opponent in program history, having met 18 times. Columbia (12-15, 9-12 AAC) leads the series over CIU 12-6. 

The afternoon battle against the Koalas was an evenly matched one, with the Rams taking a 10-9 lead (4:13) on a Keniah Watkins bucket in the first quarter. Columbia found their way back in front for the next several minutes and into the second period until CIU regained the advantage 21-20 on a Bethany Rymer layup with 5:54 remaining in the half. The Rams led by as much as five before the break (29-24) but clung to just a two-point edge at halftime. 

Things would go south for the Rams after the intermission as the Koalas would light it up from deep, knocking down five triples in the third period to outscore CIU 26-7 in the quarter. The Rams would recover in the fourth and cut the deficit down to just 60-55 on a Mariah Leinbach free throw with 2:13 left in the game. However, it was the last time CIU saw the ball go through the net as the game slipped from their grasp down the stretch.

Leinbach continues to be one of the league's top scorers as the junior poured in 20 points and grabbed six rebounds. Rymer had a notable performance off the bench with 15 points and six rebounds on 6-of-7 shooting while going a perfect 3-of-3 from the foul line. 

The Rams' backcourt duo of Daja Taylor and Watkins filled the stat sheet, as each had eight points and six boards.

The story of the game came from CIU's second-half performance as they went just 8-for-30 from the field in the game's final 20 minutes.

Up Next: The Rams host Johnson University (Tenn.) on Saturday. Feb. 24 at 2:00 p.m. in the 2023-2024 season finale.