RALEIGH, N.C. -  The Wofford women's basketball team played hard at Reynolds Coliseum in the second game of the Preseason WNIT. However, the Terriers were outdone in the second half for a third-straight game to drop their first-ever meeting with the Towson Tigers, 64-48.
 
Wofford moves to 0-3 with the loss. Towson remains undefeated, improving to 3-0 on the year.
 
The Terriers kept it close through three quarters, trailing by only three at halftime and by eight after the third, but they could only put up eight points in the final frame. Towson outscored Wofford 33-19 in the second half. The Terriers shot 30.2% from the field while the Tigers shot 36.9% in the game. One of the key differences came from beyond the arc, with Towson converting nine three-pointers for 33.3% while Wofford only posted four threes, shooting 25.0% from distance. Wofford outrebounded Towson, 46-44.
 
"They're a really talented, athletic team," said head coach Jimmy Garrity on Towson. "They're very well-coached. They run really good stuff. They score typically in the 80s; they're one of the leading teams in the country in offense, so from a standpoint of holding them to 60 points was good defensively. However, we let one, [Allie Kubek], go for 25, which I'm sure is probably her career-high. That really just hurt us. I felt like within our offense, the plays that we missed were a couple of tough turnovers. I thought if we could have been right there and hold her to her average, it would've been a one, two, three possession ballgame.
 
"We did a good job on the boards – 15 offensive rebounds, and we got 46 boards total. They're a team that really loves to get out in transition, and we held them to zero points in fast break, and that was a key. We went for a stretch in the second half, about five minutes in the third quarter and then about six minutes at the start of the fourth quarter, where we couldn't score it. We just had some tough rim-outs. I love this team, and I love their heart and effort. We'll bounce back, and this is preparing us for games down the road in conference play."
 
The Terriers were able to hold Towson's leading scorer, Aleah Nelson, somewhat in check, keeping her to 13 points. However, it was a different Tiger who stepped up in her absence: Allie Kubek, who put up a career-high 25 points.
 
Lilly Hatton was the top-scorer for the Terriers, tallying 16 points with four rebounds. Niyah Lutz was close behind with 14. She was also the top rebounder, pulling down nine boards to finish one shy of a double-double. Jackie Carman posted seven rebounds and six points off the bench, while Lawren Cook also contributed five points and six boards. Reagan Rapert and Helen Matthews tied with Cook for the team lead in assists, with each dishing a pair. Rapert added two rebounds, and Matthews put up three points. Alexis Tomlin totaled four points and five boards.
 
The first quarter began with both teams jostling for the lead. Towson opened the scoring with a free throw, but Niyah Lutz responded with a layup and a three-pointer to put Wofford up 5-1. The squads traded shots, and the Tigers rattled off eight-straight points. Alexis Tomlin and Helen Matthews sandwiched a Towson triple with made baskets, but Towson kept scoring threes. Lilly Hatton made a layup with a minute left in the period, though, to keep the Terriers close. The score was 22-14 in favor of the Tigers.
 
The second quarter was Wofford's best, as Lilly Hatton popped a three early to help the Terriers attempt a comeback. They then followed a Towson layup with a Lawren Cook triple and a Hatton layup. The Tigers put up a layup, but Reagan Rapert then swiped a steal and dished to Lawren Cook on the fast break for a score. A pair of free throws and a three-pointer from Niyah Lutz put the Terriers ahead 29-28. The Tigers would respond with three more points before the break to enter halftime clinging to a 31-29 advantage.
 
Towson opened the second half on fire, scoring eight-straight points. Lilly Hatton made a free throw, but the Tigers again scored. Niyah Lutz helped the Terriers' cause with a jumper, followed by a Hatton layup. Towson popped another three, but Wofford refused to back down. Hatton scored a pair of layups, and Jackie Carman contributed one of her own. The Tigers kept stride, however, knocking down five points themselves in the final two minutes. The Terriers were down by eight, 48-40, heading into the final period.
 
Towson would begin to pull away, opening with seven consecutive points before Jackie Carman put home a jumper. But right on cue, Towson would score from behind the arc yet again. Carman added a free throw, and Alexis Tomlin contributed a jumper, but another Towson three would essentially ice the game. The teams traded a free throw each to conclude the affair, but with only eight fourth quarter points to Towson's 16, the Terriers suffered a 64-48 defeat.
 
Wofford concludes its three-game stint in the Preseason WNIT at Reynolds Coliseum tomorrow with a 4:30 pm contest against the Florida Gators.