CHICAGO, Ill. (January 22, 2023)
 
In Short…
Loyola (6-13, 1-5 A-10) fell 67-51 to La Salle (13-8, 4-2) Sunday afternoon at Gentile Arena. Freshman Mallory Ramage led the Ramblers in scoring with a career-high nine points, along with eight points each from Sitori Tanin, Jala Johnson and Anna Brown.
 
How it Happened
Loyola led much of the opening half, outscoring the Explorers 15-13 in the first quarter after starting a perfect 4 for 4 from the floor, and grabbed an eight-point lead near the end of the second quarter when a pull up jumper by Johnson keyed an 8-0 run to put the Ramblers ahead 28-20. However, La Salle knocked down a pair of treys and stormed back on a 10-0 spurt over the final two-plus minutes to take a 30-28 advantage at halftime.
 
The Explorers' momentum spilled over into the third quarter as the Ramblers came out cold. La Salle eventually scored 21 unanswered points to grab a 41-28 lead, and the cold streak continued as the Explorers would eventually outscore the Ramblers 22-9 in the third period. Emma Nolan's free throw at 5:26 snapped an eight-minute scoring drought, and a conventional three-point play by Mallory Ramage with 47 seconds left in the quarter became the only made field of the period (1-12) for Loyola.
 
However, Loyola didn't go away quietly and chipped away to get back within striking distance. The Ramblers used a 7-0 run midway through the fourth quarter, sparked by four points from Kira Chivers including a layup to make the score 55-46 at the under-five media timeout. But, La Salle countered with a trey after the stoppage and remained ahead by double digits the rest of the way.
 
Kayla Spruill led four players in double figures for the Explorers with a game-high 15 points and seven rebounds.
 
Inside the Box Score

• Chivers made her first career start, finishing with six points, three assists and three rebounds
• Johnson posted a season-high eight points, finishing two points shy of her previous career high
• Tanin went a perfect 4 for 4 from the field and recorded one steal and one block
• Emma Nolan grabbed a team-high six rebounds with three points and three steals
• Loyola's reserves outscored La Salle 20-16 in points from the bench
• Loyola had one fewer turnover than La Salle (19-20), and has not committed more turnovers than its opponent in eight straight games
• Loyola went 16 for 19 (84.2%) at the free throw line
• The Ramblers were limited to just three made shots (3-12) from beyond the arc in the third straight game
• The Explorers outscored the Ramblers 17-3 in second-chance points, including nine posted in the third period

Up Next
Loyola hosts George Washington in the first meeting between the two teams on Wednesday. Tipoff is slated for 11 a.m. CT on NBC Sports for "Field Day with the Ramblers".