Blue Demons Tumble at Toledo
12/15/2002 12:00:00 AM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Boxscore
TOLEDO, Ohio – Looking for their best start since the 1996-97 season, the DePaul women’s basketball team fell, 61-51, at Toledo on Sunday afternoon. The Blue Demons led by as many as six in the first half, but a 25-4 run by Toledo to end the first half and begin the second was too much to overcome.
With Toledo leading 11-7, the Blue Demons put together a 12-2 run that started on a three-pointer by Laura Sobeiszczyk. Ashley Luke followed with a breakaway lay-up and trey of her own forcing the Rockets to take a timeout.
The DePaul run ended and a Toledo run started on a three-pointer by Julie Hillis with 5:50 left in the first half. The Rockets outscored the Blue Demons, 15-2 to end the first half. With DePaul leading 21-17, three consecutive treys by Kelly Walker, Tia Davis and Walker again propelled the Rockets to a 28-21 halftime lead.
Toledo quickly built a 15-point lead at 38-23 to start the second half. The Blue Demons answered and closed the gap to 38-31 with 12:24 left in the game. Consecutive buckets under the basket by DePaul’s three Smith’s pulled DePaul to within seven points.
The Rockets opened up the lead again on back-to-back three’s by Davis for a 50-33 advantage with less than eight minutes left in the game.
DePaul scored 12 of the game’s next 17 points, including a pair of long-range bombs by Luke that trimmed the lead to 55-45 with 4:14 to go in the game. Khara Smith also scored on a pair of short jumpers in the lane during the run while Jenni Dant tallied her first field goal of the contest.
The deficit was cut to eight points on two occasions in the final three minutes, but the Blue Demons could get no closer as Toledo sealed the game on a breakaway lay-up for the 61-51 final.
After going just 8-for-25 in the first half, DePaul came back and shot .444 from the field in the second stanza. Ashley Luke led the Blue Demons with 14 points while Dant and Sobieszczyk chipped in 10 points apiece. Jamie Smith grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds after collecting 12 against Valparaiso on Friday. As a team, the Blue Demons outrebounded the Rockets, 39-34.
The women’s team returns to Rosemont on Wednesday evening when they host the Northern Illinois Huskies. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. at the Allstate Arena. The women’s game will be followed by the DePaul men’s team taking on Florida International.
The next home game at the DePaul Athletic Center is scheduled for Dec. 22 against Top 25 foe George Washington. Tipoff with the Colonials is at 2 p.m.