Coming off a 73-64 loss against Siena, the Binghamton women’s basketball team was unable to flip the script and get back into the win column, suffering a 77-73 loss to Loyola on Sunday night. Despite trailing at halftime, BU bounced back in the second half and headed into the final quarter with the lead. However, the Bearcats relinquished their lead in the final minutes as they dropped the matchup to the Greyhounds.

“We never gave up,” said Binghamton head coach Bethann Shapiro Ord. “We went up a little bit, but then we went back and forth, and we kept trading baskets.”

After Loyola (1-1) won the opening tip and got on the board first, BU (1-2) responded as graduate student guard Denai Bowman drove into the paint and converted on a layup. Bowman then managed to get a steal which she turned into another layup after beating her defender. The Bearcats’ offense stayed hot as redshirt sophomore guard Ella Wanzer drained a three-pointer to give Binghamton a 7-5 lead. However, Loyola was able to keep up, converting on several opportunities to take an 11-7 lead. The Greyhounds extended their lead to nine before a three-pointer from freshman guard Yanniah Boyd stopped the bleeding. At the end of the first quarter, Loyola found itself up 17-12.

“When it’s a tight game, you gotta string some stops up,” Shapiro Ord said. “We definitely had a few moments, a few rebounds that you can’t give up.”

The Bearcats started the second period strong. After a Greyhound turnover, Wanzer knocked down a three-pointer to cut the deficit to two. On BU’s next possession, Wanzer made another shot from beyond the arc to give the visitors an 18-17 advantage. Both teams continued to exchange baskets with Loyola maintaining a slight lead. The Greyhounds’ array of small runs later in the period went up 30-24. Wanzer continued to stay hot, converting on an and one opportunity in the quarter’s final minute but, going into the half, Binghamton trailed 32-27.

“We just gotta clean things up on defense.” Shapiro Ord said. “We gotta be better. In close games you gotta stay disciplined on defense, which is, being where you need to be, communicating well, doing your job and you can’t let up.”

Heading into the third quarter, Loyola made a layup to go up 36-27. However, Wanzer continued her strong shooting performance, hitting two free throws and a three-pointer to make it a four-point game. Midway through the period, sophomore guard/forward Camryn Fauria drew a foul and made two free throws to give BU a 37-36 lead. Three-pointers from sophomore guard Meghan Casey and Wanzer allowed the Bearcats to maintain their lead. Going into the final quarter, Binghamton held a 53-52 lead.

“I was proud of their effort for sure,” Shapiro Ord said. “You know, that wasn’t a question. They didn’t give up, and they stuck to the things they know.”

Wanzer maintained her hot hand heading into the fourth quarter, splashing a three-pointer less than a minute in. Graduate student guard/forward Shannon O’Connor followed this up with a three-pointer of her own to give BU a 59-54 lead. The rest of the game continued to be highly contested as both Binghamton and Loyola refused to take their foot off the gas. Baskets from Bowman, Wanzer and freshman forward Kendall Bennett cemented BU’s lead until the two-minute mark when the Greyhounds took the lead. With less than a minute to go, Loyola converted on a three-point play to take a 75-73 lead and then followed this up with another basket to go up by four. When the final buzzer sounded, BU found itself on the losing end, dropping the matchup 77-73.

“We kept trading baskets when we needed to get some stops,” Shapiro Ord said. “We’ve got to clean things up on defense.”

Wanzer led the way on offense with a career-high 36 points, with seven three-pointers. Bowman contributed on both sides of the ball adding 13 points, three steals and two blocks in the losing effort. As a team, Binghamton shot 55.1 percent from the field and shot 64.7 percent from the three.

“When that first one went in [for Wanzer], I just knew it was [gone],” Shapiro Ord said. “I thought, ‘yep, she found it.’ You know, when they’re shooters, they have their moments and she’s good.”

Binghamton will continue its nonconference slate against St. Bonaventure in its next matchup on Saturday, Nov. 18. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. at the Dr. Bai Lee Court at the Events Center in Vestal, New York.