Women fall to top 10 teams

The Xavier women's basketball entered the toughest part of

their schedule last week when they played two top ten teams in two games. The Musketeers traveled to Louisiville to face the University of Louisville Cardinals on November

20. Xavier struggled out of the gate and fell to the No. 9 ranked Cardinals 62-44. The Musketeers returned home this past Friday and played host to the Stanford University. The women played the third-ranked Cardinal close but

couldn't overcome a tough second half, losing 80-64. Following the Stanford loss, the women are now

1-3 on the season. The Musketeers were looking

to avenge last season's NCAA Tournament loss to Louisville when they traveled to the KFC Yum! Center. Xavier only scored 12 points in the first half, entering

the locker rooms down 31-12. The Musketeers outscored the Cardinals in the second half 32- 31, but the early deficit was too much to overcome. The Cardinals' defense stymied the Musketeers all game, holding senior guard Tyeasha Moss to only three points and limiting the Musketeers to 23 percent shooting from the field.

"Louisville did a good job of switching things up against us,

but no matter what they are doing, we need to do a better

job of attacking at all times," head coach Amy Waugh said.

Xavier held its own on the boards, pulling down 46

rebounds to Lousville's 48. Junior forward Amber Gray grabbed 13 rebounds while senior forward Sabrina Johnson corralled 12 rebounds. On Friday, the Musketeers returned to action against one of the perennial powers in women's basketball— Stanford. Unlike the

game in Louisville, Xavier came out of the gate strong in the first half against Stanford, trailing only by one going into halftime. Stanford started the second half on a 15-7 run which helped push their lead to 56-42. The Musketeers pulled to within six with fewer than 10 minutes remaining,

but Stanford's All-American center Nnemkadi Ogwumike carried The Cardinal to victory, scoring 33 points and pulling down 14 rebounds. Sophomore guard Lynette

Holmes led all Xavier players with a career-high 18 points. Fellow sophomore guard Shatyra Hawkes netted a career-high 15 points against The Cardinal. "Our defense has been good for us," Waugh said. "We need to continue to be more consistent and not give them so many second

opportunities." Waugh was pleased with the Musketeers' first-half performance, especially considering the opponent

they were up against. The women play host to the university of South Carolina tonight at 7 p.m. The Gamecocks are 5-1 on the season with their lone loss coming to a ranked team. Following the South Carolina

game, the women will take part in the Crosstown Shootout as they take on University of Cincinnati here at Cintas Center. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Sunday.