Contact: Emily Adlfinger, Director of Athletic Communications, 563-588-7970

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (Mar. 11, 2021) – The Loras College women's basketball team (6-7, 3-5 A-R-C) saw the 2021 season come to an end on Thursday against a seasoned Coe College (9-3, 6-2 A-R-C) squad in the American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) Tournament semifinal matchup as the Duhawks struggled to overcome a burst late in the first half by the Kohawks and fell 78-59.  

The Duhawks won the opening tip and Madison Haslow got the ball to Ashley Funk to post the first two points before Cierra Bachmann knocked down a three-pointer to give Loras an early 5-0 lead. The Kohawk answered back with a layup and three-pointer of their own but Bachmann drew the foul and made her two free throws to put Loras back up, 7-5, with 7:24 on the clock. Coe tied it up again but not long after, Lydia Breunig made a three to give Loras the 10-7 lead with 6:22 to play. The Kohawks took back the momentum off a turnover and sparked an 8-0 run until Jessica Coulthard found her way to the basket to stop the run. Coe tacked on fie more points to lead, 20-12 but the Duhawks closed out the quarter with six points in the final minute to cut Coe's lead, 20-18.

Sami Martin put up the first points in the second quarter to tie the game at 20 in the opening minute but it took nearly five minutes for the next points to go up on the board as both teams struggled to find a rhythm. The Kohawks added four points to lead 24-20 until a three-pointer by Haslow brought Loras back within one, 24-23 with 3:48 remaining, but Coe closed out the half with an 11-0 run to hold a 35-23 advantage and hold the Duhawks to five points for the quarter.

Both teams traded free-throws to start the second half but the Kohawks continued to maintain their cushion and lead 44-30 with 6:09 left in the quarter. Martin gave the Duhawks a burst of offense at the 5:24 mark, making a layup and drawing the foul for a three-point play and the defense came away with a turnover to give Loras another chance on offense. Bachmann went up for a shot but drew the foul and made both free-throws to erase Coe's double-digit lead, but the Kohawks came right back to get in the groove on offense, finishing the quarter ahead 57-43.

Coe came out hot to start the fourth quarter and continued to put distance between the Duhawks, leading 67-45 with 6:18 left to play but a three-pointer by Sydney Schuler and a jump shot by Martin gave the Duhawks some brief momentum on offense. Megan Murray also got in on the scoring with a three-pointer off a pass from Haslow with 3:20 remaining and added another basket in the final minute, but the Kohawks had built too much of a lead to overcome and came away with the 78-59 win.

Martin posted her third double-double of the season with 17 points and 11 rebounds while Bachmann added 13 points and a team-high three steals. Breunig had five assists and both Martin and Jessica Coulthard tallied a block.

The Duhawks finished the season with a record of 6-7 and 3-5 in A-R-C regular season action. With two graduating seniors, the Duhawks look to return the majority of the 2021 squad which showed tremendous growth and poise amidst an unconventional season due to the pandemic.