Detroit Mercy women’s basketball has experienced both ends of the spectrum during the opening stretch of its 2026-27 season. The Titans opened with a historic 64-point victory, battled through a difficult road win at Valparaiso and also faced two nationally ranked opponents in their first four games. After splitting those contests, Head Coach Kiefer Haffey’s squad sits at 2-2 as it prepares to return home.
The Titans began the season Nov. 2 with a dominant 94-30 win over Michigan-Dearborn at Calihan Hall. The 64-point margin was the third-largest victory in program history, while the 30 points allowed marked the fourth fewest by a Detroit Mercy opponent ever.
Junior Stephanie Utomi made an immediate impact in her Titan debut, recording a double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Senior Paula Lopez added 15 points, and senior Makayla Jackson finished with 12. Sophomore Naïma Diawara narrowly missed a double-double of her own, contributing nine points and 10 rebounds.
Detroit Mercy’s defensive pressure was the biggest standout of the opener, though. The Titans forced 48 turnovers and collected 30 steals, turning those takeaways into 44 points. Senior Marie Outlay led the team with eight steals.
The strong start, however, was quickly tested.
Two days after its season-opening win, the Titans traveled to face No. 23 Illinois. The Titans rallied after a tough start to bring themselves within four points, 36-32, at halftime.
Despite the Fighting Illini being too much to handle in the second half, there were certainly positives to take away from the eventual 84-50 loss.
Detroit Mercy responded three days later with another win, earning a 67-63 road victory over Valparaiso on Nov. 7.
The game remained close throughout, with the Titans holding a 14-10 lead after the first quarter. Valparaiso rallied in the second and carried a 30-29 advantage into halftime. The Beacons extended their lead to six points in the third quarter, but the Titans answered with a late push to take a 48-47 lead into the final period.
Valparaiso regained control in the fourth, building a 58-52 lead with just over four minutes remaining. That’s when Paula Lopez took over.
The senior connected on back-to-back three-pointers to help spark an 11-1 Detroit Mercy run. The surge gave the Titans a 63-59 advantage with 1:35 remaining. Valparaiso continued to hang around, but the red, white and blue converted key baskets and free throws down the stretch to secure the four-point triumph.
Lopez finished with 21 points, while Jackson contributed 16. Junior Maya Anderson added a career-high 10 points, giving the Titans four players in double figures. Detroit Mercy’s advantage at the free-throw line also proved to be pivotal, as the team made 20 of 28 attempts compared to Valparaiso’s nine of 21.
Notre Dame then presented another ranked challenge.
The Titans closed their opening four-game stretch with a trip to South Bend to face the no. 13 Fighting Irish on Nov. 10. The Fighting Irish established control immediately, scoring the first 22 points of the game and taking a 32-4 lead after the opening quarter.
Detroit Mercy found more offensive rhythm in the second quarter, scoring 17 points, but Notre Dame continued to build its advantage and carried a 56-17 lead into halftime. The Fighting Irish ultimately handed the Titans a 108-60 defeat.
Despite the result, sophomore Colleena Bryant delivered a notable performance off the bench. Bryant scored a career-high 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting and added three assists to lead UDM. Freshman Alonna Divine and junior Addisen Mastriano each contributed eight points, while Diawara grabbed a team-high six rebounds.
The Titans showed some fight late as well, scoring 23 points in the fourth quarter and shooting 8-for-17 from the field. Divine scored all eight of her points in the final period, and Detroit Mercy connected on all three of its fourth-quarter three-point attempts.
Next Up
Detroit Mercy will return home to Calihan Hall for a three-game homestand that begins tomorrow, as they take on North Dakota at 1 p.m.
Paula Lopez has led the way to this point scoring-wise, sitting at 13.0 points a game, with Makayla Jackson and Stephanie Utomi rounding out the double-digit scorers so far at 11.0 and 10.3 points respectively. Utomi has also grabbed 6.8 rebounds per game so far, good for a team lead. It remains to be seen if the Titans can continue their overall encouraging start to the season.
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