FORT WAYNE, Ind. – A season-best 13 three-pointers was not enough for the Milwaukee women's basketball team, as the Panthers fell to Purdue Fort Wayne, 70-60, on Wednesday evening.
 
Jorey Buwalda led all scorers with 20 points and recorded her third double-double of year with 10 rebounds. She finished 7-for-12 from the field and knocked down a career-best four from three-pointers.
 
Grace Lomen added 13 points, 10 of which came in the second half, while Madison Fitzgibbon scored eight.
 
Purdue Fort Wayne jumped out quickly, taking advantage of six Milwaukee turnovers to build a 13-point first-quarter lead. The Mastodons shot 62.5 percent in the opening frame and went 4-for-7 from beyond the arc to take a 24-17 advantage after 10 minutes.
 
"Purdue Fort Wayne is a solid team with experienced players," noted head coach Kyle Rechlicz. "When we made a mistake, they made us pay."
 
"Our mental lapses on defense are costing us in games," Rechlicz added. "That's something we are going to focus heavily on these next two games before we are back into conference play."
 
Buwalda and Fitzgibbon each connected on a pair of three-pointers in the second quarter, helping MKE slice into the PFW advantage and trail 36-31 at the break.
 
Despite an early surge in the third quarter that pulled the Panthers within three, the Mastodons regained momentum and closed the period on a 13-4 run to take a 14-point lead at 56-42.
 
The Panthers got within three scores again after the fourth quarter media timeout as Gomes knocked down a three, followed by four points from Kendall Barnes to make it a 63-58 game. However, Purdue Fort Wayne was able to hold off the push by Milwaukee and move to 3-0 in Horizon League play with a 10-point win.
 
In addition to a season-high in threes, the Panthers also tied their season-best assist total with 14, paced by Fitzgibbon's six.
 
Along with Buwalda's four triples, the Panthers got three from Lomen and two apiece from Fitzgibbon and Gomes. Sophia Rampulla and Jada Williams each added one.
 
"It was nice to see us moving the ball on offense and hitting threes like we know we can," Rechlicz said. "Jorey had a great first half for us, and Grace followed it up with a very productive second half."
 
 
The Mastodons countered with 10 three-point makes of their own, including four from leading scorer Alana Nelson, who finished the game with 20 points. Nika Lokica added 16 and three steals, while Jordan Reid scored 12 and Ella Riggs chipped in with 10. Reid also led PFW with seven rebounds.
 
Milwaukee will next host the Ripon Red Hawks on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at the Klotsche Center. Tickets for the game are available at MKEPanthers.com/Tickets. Fans unable to attend can watch the game on ESPN+ with Matt Menzl on the call.