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DAYTON, Ohio (Jan. 26, 2006) - Freshman Traci Edwards grabbed a school-record 22 rebounds to go with a team-high 21 points, but it was not enough as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's basketball team fell to Wright State, 69-67, Thursday night in Dayton.

The Panthers (10-8, 5-2 Horizon League) had won 15-straight against the Raiders (8-11, 4-5 Horizon League), while their five-game winning and four-game road streaks also came to an end.

Rhea Mays led all scorers with 26, while senior Nichole Drummond finished with 15 points and freshman Emily Markert 14 for Milwaukee.

Edwards' 22 boards eclipsed the previous mark of 21 reached three times, last by Maria Viall twice during the 2002-03 season.

"It's too bad we weren't able to come away with the victory in a game like that," head coach Sandy Botham said. "Traci's proven to be a great force for us. Whether it be vs. UIC, where she didn't do a lot of scoring for us but came up with 14 big boards for us, that's the kind of presence that makes the difference for us and keeps us in games."

UWM did not have an answer for Mays, who shot 10-of-12 from the field, 3-of-3 on three's and 3-of-3 from the free throw line. Milwaukee countered with aggressive play on the boards, outrebounding WSU 50-26, but it was not enough.

"They hit big shots. You have to credit Rhea Mays, having an MVP kind of game. She was just in a wave all night," Botham said. "Alicia Avery also made a difference. (At 6-5) she gives them a look that they didn't have the first time we played them."

The Panthers shot 41 percent for the game, but committed 23 turnovers. Wright State just slightly better, at 43.9 percent, but committed just 11 miscues.

Milwaukee nearly erased a nine-point Wright State lead in the final 2:35. Trailing 62-53, Markert hit a layup and was followed by a three-point play from Edwards to make it 62-58. The Raiders then hit 7-of-8 free throws down the stretch to keep UWM at bay. The Panthers answered with a pair of Edwards layups, a Markert three and a layup by Drummond in the closing seconds.

It was Edwards who made it 69-67 on a layup with a second to play, but Milwaukee could not foul quick enough on the inbounds pass and time expired.

"Our players don't quit. They are going to play until the very end. We switched between offense and defense (down the stretch) and were able to get who we wanted at the line," Botham said. "It paid dividends for us, where we were able to claw back into it. We got to the free throw line as many times as we wanted to, we didn't convert as many as we should have. If we converted a little more, it would have been the difference."

The Raiders led throughout the second half, as their lead reached 10 at 56-46 when Mays drilled a three with 6:41 to play. Trailing eight at the break, UWM could get no closer than five until the final minute.

Wright State ended the first half on a 13-3 run to take a 38-30 lead into the half. Milwaukee had led throughout the opening frame, finally at 27-25 on a Markert three-pointer with 3:18 to play in the half. It was UWM's last field goal of the first half, as it headed into the break trailing by eight.

UWM had led by as many as seven early, when Edwards hit a layup just under five minutes into the game to make it 11-4. The Panthers' lead would reach five four more times, finally at 22-17 on a jumper by Onson with 7:08 to play.

Turnovers hounded Milwaukee in the first half, as it finished with 14. UWM also shot just 37 percent for the frame, but did outrebound its hosts 22-11. Twelve of the Panthers' boards came on the offensive end. Meanwhile, WSU shot 53.6 percent and committed just six turnovers.

Mays had 14 of Wright State's 38 first-half points, while Edwards was well on her way to the double-double with 10 points and eight boards before halftime.

The Panthers return to action Saturday, hosting Cleveland State at the Klotsche Center beginning at 2 p.m.