Upset bid fades late against No. 10 Wheaton

ORANGE, Calif. – A close game through three quarters saw the Chapman University women's basketball team's upset bid fade late as No. 10 Wheaton pulled away for the 77-61 win. Junior Megan Charles led the Panthers (1-3) with 15 points.

Chapman forced 17 turnovers from the 10th-ranked Thunder (4-1) but couldn't overcome an off-shooting night in the loss. Despite shooting just 27.9 percent from the field, Chapman was able to stay in the game until late in the fourth quarter. Wheaton started slow but was able to find its stroke, shooting 51 percent on the night.

At the end of the first quarter, Chapman led the visitors from Wheaton, Ill. 13-12. The Panthers lead reached three as late as the halfway point of the second quarter when junior Wendy Shiga sunk a free throw to put CU up 21-18. Wheaton responded with an 8-0 run, capped by Ellie Zeller's three-point play that put the Thunder up 26-21.

It was her second three-point play in the stretch that fueled the Thunder comeback. She finished with 13 points while Hannah Constantine led the visitors with 15 points and six rebounds. The Panthers fought back and were down just three at the half.

Charles began the second half with a layup to pull Chapman back within one. After trading baskets, junior Lauren Sato knocked down two free throws to tie the game at 31-31 with just under five minutes to go in the third. Wheaton scored the next seven points and never allowed Chapman to tie the game again.

The Panthers did pull back within three after a three-pointer from Sato and a layup from freshman Katelyn Serizawa with seven minutes to go. However, Wheaton put up 32 points in the final period. The Thunder shot 10-of-13 from the field and knocked down 12-of-14 free throws down the stretch to pull away.

The Panthers are back in action on Wednesday when they play their first and only SCIAC game in December against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps at 7:30 p.m.

by Steven Olveda
Sports Information Director

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