Women’s basketball falls to Panthers
The Hawkeyes never had the lead and ran into foul trouble as they were defeated by the Panthers, 88-66.
Iowa forward Logan Cook runs for a rebound during the women’s basketball game against Florida Atlantic on Thursday, November 7, 2019. The Hawkeyes defeated the Owls 85-53. Cook played seven minutes in the game.
November 17, 2019
Northern Iowa handed Iowa women’s basketball its first loss to the season by Northern Iowa on Sunday.
Senior guard Rose Simon-Ressler hit a three-pointer for Northern Iowa 18 seconds into its matchup against Iowa that gave the Panthers a lead that they would never relinquish. They took the game, 88-66, in Cedar Falls, moving the Hawkeyes’ record to 2-1 on the season.
With the Panthers controlling the tempo right from the start, the Hawkeyes were outmatched in every major statistical category. The Panthers hit 52.5 percent of their shots from the field, while the Hawkeyes only hit 35.4 percent. The Panthers also hit 10 three-pointers, while the Hawkeyes only hit five.
Though the Hawkeyes went to the free throw line 27 times, only 15 were successful. The Panthers went 16-20 from the line.
Fouls plagued two key players for the Hawkeyes in the first half, as sophomore forward and center Monika Czinano committed two fouls in the first quarter, while senior captain and guard Kathleen Doyle committed three in the second quarter. With this, their scoring totals took a tumble, as Czinano had six points and Doyle nine. Senior captain and guard Makenzie Meyer lead the Hawkeyes in points at 14.
The Panthers had four players score in double-digits. Sophomore guard Kam Finley led them with 20 points.
“Coming back, we knew it was going to be a bit of a learning experience,” head coach Lisa Bluder said in a release. “Right now Kathleen and Makenzie are carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders. They need to be able to relax and play a little freer instead of trying to carry this team.
“We have a lot of people playing minutes that weren’t last year, so it’s going to take time to gain that experience and confidence and understand how you go on the road.”
The Hawkeyes return home for their next game, which is at 6:30 p.m. against Princeton on Wednesday.
