HENRICO, Va. – The No. 8 seeded Loyola University Chicago women's basketball team's 2023-24 Atlantic 10 Tournament run was halted by top-seeded Richmond inside the Henrico Sports and Events Center Friday. The Ramblers outscored Richmond in the final two quarters but ultimately fell, 70-54.

"Our girls brought our program to new heights," said Loyola head coach Allison Guth after the loss. "We went from winning one game in this league, to earning a bye in the first round and winning a game to get us to the quarterfinals. They're not satisfied with that, I'm not satisfied with that, our team isn't, but we respect our opponent. We know how quality they were, and we know the things that we can control to do better to win this game. But there's no team, or staff, or administration I'd rather represent. We fight, we do it the right way, and on any given day, I felt like we could play better basketball."

How it Happened
The Spiders (27-5, 16-2 Atlantic 10) exploded out of the gates on a 10-0 run, forcing the Ramblers to call an early timeout to slow the sprint. Sam Galanopoulos drilled Loyola's (15-16, 8-10 Atlantic 10) first bucket at the 5:15 mark, a trey from Sitori Tanin, to make the score 12-4, Richmond. Loyola Chicago ended the opening quarter on a 4-0 run, bringing itself within 11 points of the Spiders at 20-9.

Richmond went five-for-nine (56-percent) from the field and four-four-five (80-percent) in the second quarter. A-10 Sixth Woman of the Year, Rachel Ullstrom, scored six points off the bench though the quarter while Addie Budnik, the Defensive Player of the Year, scored eight. The Ramblers made the deficit 12 points after Galanopoulos' made layup with under seven minutes left in the half, but the Spiders ballooned their lead to 21 points (43-22) as the two teams headed to the locker room.

Coming out of the halftime break, Alyssa Fisher drilled a second-chance triple from Kira Chivers before Galanopoulos added five points with a 3-pointer and a layup, making the score 50-30, Richmond. The Maroon and Gold ended the frame with back-to-back layups, thanks to Chivers and Galanopoulos, to make the score 54-34, Spiders.

The Ramblers had their best quarter in the fourth, going seven-for-13 (54-percent) from the field and four-for-five (80-percent) at the charity stripe. Galanopoulos helped with a five-point swing, scoring through contact, and making the free throw. The graduate student snagged the ball on Richmond's inbound and cashed in a layup for the easy score. The 8-0 run continued with Tanin's driving layup at the 7:38 mark.

The two teams traded blows through the reminder of the contest as Loyola couldn't quite overcome the Spiders' offensive attack. Emma Nolan's second-chance layup, the final bucket of the game, helped Loyola outscore Richmond, 20-26, through the last ten minutes.

Notes

• Loyola turned 12 Richmond turnovers into 13 points.
• The Maroon and Gold had 10 second-chance points while the Spiders had eight.
• Galanopoulos dropped 22 points (9-17 FG, 3-8 3PT), five shy of tying her career-high. She gathered four rebounds.
• Fisher trailed with 17 points (4-11 FG, 7-9 FT) and four rebounds as well. She nabbed a game-high three steals.
• Tanin posted a team-best six rebounds.
• Aaliyah Moore had five rebounds off the bench, tying her season-high.
• Chivers had a team-high three assists.

Up Next
The Ramblers will wait and see if they receive an invitation to a postseason tournament. Stay tuned to LoyolaRamblers.com and @RamblersWBB on social media for updates.

Richmond will continue play in the semifinals tomorrow at 10 a.m. CT versus either No. 5 Duquesne or No. 4 George Mason.