Recap: Women’s basketball drops matchup against Kent State

The Miami University RedHawks women’s basketball team (11-7, 4-4 in conference play) lost a home matchup against the Kent State University Golden Flashes (13-7, 6-2 in conference play) 77-63 this afternoon.

The Golden Flashes set the tone early on, outscoring Miami 16-8 after 10 minutes of play. Junior guard Dionna Gray scored eight of Kent State’s points in the first quarter, and senior forward Bridget Dunn sank a 3-pointer in the final minute to give Kent State an eight-point lead going into the second quarter.

Sophomore guard Mya Babbitt added another three to open the second quarter. Kent State added 12 in total before halftime, but an 11-point quarter for the RedHawks kept their deficit to nine.

Miami outscored Kent State 18-16 in the third quarter, but a dominating fourth quarter saw the Golden Flashes add 33 more points to their lead while holding the RedHawks to 26. A jump shot from Jenna Batsch finished the scoring, and Kent State took its victory 77-63.

Graduate student guard Maya Chandler scored 18 points for the RedHawks, her second-most of the season. Sophomore guard Enjulina Gonzalez’s 17 points marked her 13th game in a row in the double digits.

Sophomore forward Amber Tretter put up 12 points while rebounding the ball 11 times for a double-double. She matched Chandler with three turnovers, while first-year forward Ilse de Vries finished with four turnovers and four blocks, leading Miami in both categories.

Batsch finished the day with 19 points to lead the Golden Flashes. Dunn, sophomore forward Janae Tyler and Gray all scored more than 10 points with 13, 13 and 12 respectively.

The Golden Flashes’ victory brought them up to No. 2 in the Mid-American Conference (MAC), while the RedHawks’ 4-4 standing keeps them at No. 6.

Miami returns to the court at the University of Toledo Rockets (13-5, 5-3 in conference play) on Jan. 29.

@thekethan04

babukc2@miamioh.edu