The Wright State Raiders’ opening match away against the Loyola-Chicago Ramblers started off strong for the Raiders, but a last minute buzzer beater sealed the door on a statement win.
After a measured start, Wright State got on the board first and steadily climbed into the lead off of Rambler miscues. Jayden Terry was the key to the Raiders defense early, stealing the ball with athleticism before being sidelined for a time off an ankle sprain. The Raiders went 9-12 from the field off a balanced attack while holding the Ramblers to 27% shooting, leading 28-11. Wright State looked invincible to start.
The second quarter was a different story. Loyola regrouped and, mirroring the previous quarter, capitalized on Raider passing mistakes to climb back. Wright State went fully cold, only scoring a single field goal and two free throws, leading to a 32-32 tie at half.
“We stopped dictating in the second and that was the difference,” head coach Kari Hoffman remarked about the quarter.
Allie Daniels, a sophomore transfer from West Virginia Wesleyan, led the squad with 9 points in the first half. Jayden Terry led all players in steals.
The second half brought about a battle for the lead. As the broadcast team put it, it was now a matter of who wanted it more and both teams were giving it all they had. Loyola started the third with a run to give them a seven point lead before Wright State stormed back with a stout zone defense. A tech on Loyola’s Gemma Wichmann put the Raiders up 51-48 to end the third quarter.
“Our zone was awesome. We were disruptive in it and the players found how to dictate again,” Hoffman told HoriZone. “Defense needs to be our identity and that’s what I’ve been preaching to them since June.”
Raiders and Ramblers continued trading blows into the fourth, forcing turnovers and buckets. With the Ramblers keeping a small hold on the lead throughout the fourth, Megan Campbell hit a three to tie the game 68-68 with thirty seconds to go. After trading free throws and the Ramblers going up by two, Terry hit a layup with four seconds left to seemingly take the game to overtime.
Then, on a contested high bank shot, Loyola-Chicago’s Brooklyn Vaughn called game, 73-71.
“I’m really proud of our resilience,” Hoffman told HoriZone. “A lot was thrown at us in that game and we didn’t blink. I had so many players playing out of position and running plays they’ve never repped due to injuries. So proud of their effort and grit tonight.”
Wright State’s Rylee Sagester and Loyola’s Brooklyn Vaughn led all scorers with 18 points, most of those coming in the second half. Daniels, Terry, and Elaina Rager also put together double digit performances for Wright State. Terry led all players with a whopping seven steals, featuring some high flying interceptions that would make NFL players jealous.
Wright State returns home to face Ohio Christian on November 6 at 5 p.m. in a doubleheader, where the men will also face Florida Atlantic later that evening.
Subscribe to our emails, and get our latest posts in your inbox, plus a weekly digest of everything we've published!
