FORT WAYNE, IND. – The University of Denver women's basketball team fell 70-55 to Purdue Fort Wayne on Saturday afternoon. With the loss DU drops to 12-9 overall and 5-3 in the Summit League while the Mastodons improve to 6-14 and 2-6.

Samantha Romanowski and Lauren Loven led the Pioneers with 10 points a-piece, while Jasmine Jeffcoat added nine. 

Denver, who entered the game leading the Summit League in scoring, shot a season low 26.2 percent on 17-of-65 from the floor.

Purdue Fort Wayne was impressive early, ripping off a 12-2 run over the first 3:21 to force head coach Jim Turgeon to take a timeout. The defensive battle continued after the break with the teams combining for just 13 points over the final 6-plus minutes of the period.

The Mastodons held an 18-9 lead after one quarter while shooting 7-of-18 from the floor including two 3-pointers from Kierstyn Repp.

Denver settled into the contest in the second quarter but Purdue Fort Wayne continued to score at will.  Despite the Pios cutting the margin to six, the Mastodons responded with an 11-8 stretch to push their lead to 31-19 at the media timeout. Following the break, Purdue Fort Wayne extended its lead thanks to three-straight baskets from Sh'Toya Sanders.

The 'Dons then got a last second bucket from Hannah Albrecht to hold a 39-26 lead after two quarters of play. Purdue Fort Wayne shot 16-of-36 (44.4 percent) from the floor while holding the Pios to just 8-of-28 (28.6 percent) from the field. 

The first-half offensive from the Mastodons carried over into the third quarter as they opened the frame with a 7-0 outburst, extending their lead to 20. DU got on the board with a pair of free throws from Claire Gritt which sparked an 8-4 run for the Pios, who trailed by 18 with 2:29 left in the quarter.

The 'Dons showed no panic during the Denver run, answering with a 3 from De'Jour Young and a pair of free throws from Albrecht prior to the end of the quarter. Purdue Fort Wayne led 58-37 after three periods while holding DU to just 11 points in the frame.

The Pios went on a 9-4 run and cut the deficit to just 14 with 4:24 left in the game. DU kept up the pressure following a Mastodon timeout, getting within nine points of the lead with over a minute to play. 

Next up: Denver will return home on Thursday, January 31^st to host South Dakota State at 7 p.m.

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