RICHMOND, Ind. — The Goshen College women's basketball team lost its season opener to Indiana University East on Saturday, falling 79-71 as part of the IU East First Bank Richmond Classic on Lingle Court.
Graysen Cockerham scored 19 points to lead the Maple Leafs while TaNiece Chapman scored 16 points and Keyaira Murff finished a rebound shy of a double-double with 12 points, but a 45-25 halftime deficit proved too much to overcome.
Kami McEldowney led all scorers with 22 points for the Red Wolves, who improved to 1-1 after losing to Shawnee State on Friday in the tournament opener. McEldowney went a perfect 8-for-8 from the foul line to augment her 4-of-6 shooting from 3-point range and added a game-high 5 assists.
Addie Brown scored 18 points and pulled down a game-high-tying 9 rebounds for IU East, which also got 14 points from Kennedy Griffin and 10 from Megan Harlow. The Red Wolves shot 51 percent (28-for-55) from the floor and 46 percent (12-for-26) from 3-point range.
Sadre'a Rougeau added 15 points and Murff had 12 for the Maple Leafs, who shot 48 percent (27-for-56) overall but connected on only two 3-point goals. Goshen also missed 10 free throws to IU East's 4.
The Maple Leafs outrebounded their hosts 32-25 and posted a 27-16 edge in points off the bench along with a 42-22 margin in the paint. Each team struggled to hang on to the basketball, combining for 44 turnovers in the early-season game.
The Red Wolves opened a 16-7 advantage at the end of one quarter, then scored 29 points in 10 minutes in the second stanza to lead 45-25 at halftime. Goshen opened the third quarter on a 10-3 run, closing the gap to as few as 12 points at the time, and got within 57-49 late in the third. IU East scored the last four points of the third period to lead by 12 at the last quarter break.
Goshen (0-1) went on an 8-3 run to start the fourth quarter, holding the Red Wolves to a single field goal in the first 5:35, and had a look at a 3-pointer that would have cut the margin to four with 4:46 remaining. An IU East 3-pointer on the other end got the margin back to double figures, though, and there it stayed until a Rougeau triple with 63 seconds left.
All told, Goshen outscored IU East 46-34 after halftime.
The road gets harder before it gets easier for the Maple Leafs, who play the ninth-ranked team in the NAIA on Sunday as they square off with Shawnee State University to conclude the classic. A Shawnee State win would make them the only undefeated team in the three-school event, while a Goshen win would ensure that all three teams split their games. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
