FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Panthers were led by a team-high 16 points from Angie Cera, but it was not enough as the Milwaukee women's basketball team fell to the Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons by a 75-55 score at the Gates Sports Center.
 
The Mastodons were paced by a dozen three-point makes as the home team led Milwaukee (14-13, 8-8 Horizon) by nine after the opening quarter but only six points at the half. Purdue Fort Wayne added on in the second half outscoring the Panthers by a 41-27 margin.
 
"They're hot right now," head coach Kyle Rechlicz said of Purdue Fort Wayne. "They hit nine three pointers in their last game and another 12 tonight. It was disappointing because we struggled with things that were in our control … communication throughout most of the game and [Purdue Fort Wayne] won the physical battle."
 
The Panthers were behind 34-28 at the intermission before the Mastodons opened the second half on a 12-3 run to take a 15-point lead.
 
"We got the steal on the first possession of the third quarter that we turned over and they hit a three … that was deflating for us," Rechlicz noted. "It was tough for us to bounce back from that."
 
PFW led by as many as 23 in the fourth quarter and finished with a 20-point win. The Mastodons were led by Shayla Sellers, who finished the game with 21 points including six three-pointers.
 
Cera's 16 led Milwaukee, her highest offensive output since scoring 19 points against Central Michigan on November 25 as she finished the night 6-for-10 from the field.
 
Kendall Nead had nine points with a team-high five rebounds, tied with Jorey Buwalda on the glass. Kamy Peppler had seven points with a team-best mark in both assists and steals with four each.
 
Jada Williams and Anna Lutz each had six points apiece, with Lutz tying her season high of three blocks.
 
Despite the loss, the Panthers had 28 points in the paint and won the rebounding battle by a 30-28 margin. Milwaukee also sank all eight of their attempts from the free throw line.
 
Milwaukee gets back to game action on Saturday when the team heads to Cleveland for an 11:00 a.m. (CT) start against the Vikings at the Wolstein Center.