Women’s Basketball Drops Midweek Heart Matchup to Bobcats

BALDWIN CITY - Coming off an eight-day break between games, Baker women's basketball fell to Peru State, 87-74, on Wednesday evening in the Collins Center in the first post-Thanksgiving matchup for BU.

The Wildcats overcame an early hole to tie things up at the end of the first quarter and went into halftime trailing, 37-32, before the Bobcats notched back-to-back 25-point frames to pull away in the second half.

Both teams shot from a high percentage from the floor, with each side shooting over 50 percent. Peru State knocked down seven triples in the game while holding Baker to just two - its lowest outing against a Heart team this year. PSC also capitalized at the free-throw line, going 20-of-24 compared to a 10-for-15 night from BU.

Skye Pepp matched her season high to lead the Wildcats in scoring, pouring in 20 points to go along with three rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Taniya Tease and Gabby Rose scored 16 points apiece, while Corinne Cole chipped in seven points off the bench.

Peru State jumped to a quick 7-0 lead within the first two minutes of the game before the Wildcats responded with an impressive counter to keep things even in the first quarter. BU got a mixture of scoring to start with Pepp, Tease, Mariah Dightman, and Amaya Barnes all putting up points.

Rose and Pepp each had a steal that resulted in a transition bucket, and a second-chance score from Kennedy Bryan helped bring the first quarter to a 17-17 deadlock.

A pair of Dightman free throws, along with a layup from Rihanna Blanchar,d gave Baker a four-point edge early in the second period until the Bobcats punched back with an 11-3 run to reclaim the lead.

Back-to-back threes from Tease and Rose looked to send BU into the half with momentum, but the visitors played spoiler and closed the quarter with seven unanswered points to take a five-point lead at the break.

Barnes and Tease scored a couple of layups to keep BU around early in the second half before Peru State started to stretch its lead midway through the third period. Tease converted an old-fashioned three-point play to knot the game at 41-41 with 7:07 left in the quarter, but the scoring would come to a halt for the Wildcats until a couple of late hustle plays from Pepp and a free throw from Cole made it a 62-50 deficit for BU heading into the final 10 minutes.

The Bobcats maintained their double-digit lead throughout the rest of the game as a pair of Pepp free throws pulled Baker as close as it'd get at 64-54. Rose, Pepp and Cole each contributed to the scoring to try and spark a late rally, but Peru State held on to stay unbeaten in Heart play this year at 5-0.

With its non-conference matchup at Kansas Christian being moved to January 19, Baker's next outing will be a road test at William Penn on Dec. 13 at 2 p.m. in Oskaloosa, Iowa

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