CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Western Michigan women's basketball team lost to the number one seed Toledo Rockets 72-61 during the quarterfinal round of the 2024 Mid-American Conference Tournament Wednesday afternoon. Senior guard
Hannah Spitzley led the Broncos with a season-high 20 points after shooting 4-7 from three and grabbed a season-best nine rebounds against the Rockets.
During the first quarter of play, the Broncos shot off to a seven-point lead under the first two minutes of action after three consecutive possessions with a three-pointer made. Spitzley would make two three-pointers on the first two offensive possessions, while freshman
Nile Muguira Orbe made a three-pointer on the third to push the WMU lead to 9-2 at the 8:21 mark in the first quarter. The Broncos continued to attack offensively with a layup from
Megan Wagner and another three from Spitzley, to propel the Brown and Gold to a 14-5 lead with five minutes remaining in the first quarter. Toledo would use those final five minutes of the quarter to build together an 11-6 scoring run to climb back into the game against WMU. After a buzzer-beating layup from Spitzley, the women's basketball team would take a 20-16 lead into the second quarter.
In the second quarter, the Brown and Gold continued to tack on points, after shooting a game-best 64.29% from the field in the second. To begin the second frame, Spitzley, graduate student guard
Kaitlyn Zarycki, and redshirt sophomore forward
De'Ahna Richardson scored seven points on three straight offensive possessions to take a nine-point lead with 7:29 remaining in the half. Richardson continued her offensive barrage by scoring two three-pointers over WMU's next three possessions to help the Broncos take a 33-23 advantage with 4:13 remaining in the half. Both teams exchanged buckets over the final four minutes and change in the second quarter with
Artemis Kouki and Spitzley scoring the last four points for the Brown and Gold to end the half. At intermission, WMU took a 42-32 lead into the locker room after shooting an even 50% from the field during the first two quarters.
After the break, Toledo mounted its comeback by holding the Broncos to 25% from the field for a total of eight points in the third quarter. During the third, the Rockets outscored WMU 20-8 and the Broncos saw a 10-point lead turn into a two-point deficit at the conclusion of the quarter. In the third, Zarycki would score six points, while Spitzley accounted for two points.
With 7:05 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Brown and Gold tied the contest up at 54 all after back-to-back layups from Zarycki and Richardson. However, over the next five and a half minutes, the Brown and Gold were held scoreless and saw Toledo build a 15-point lead after the Rockets scored 13 straight points.
Historical Notes
After ending the game with four three pointers, Spitzley improved her career three point total to 85 three pointers, which is the 20th most three pointers made in program history.
Zarycki's 552 points during the 2023-24 campaign is the fifth most points scored for the Western Michigan women's basketball program in a single season. At the conclusion of Wednesday's contest, Zarycki ranked 11th on the active career scoring list amongst all players in NCAA women's basketball.
Saxman concluded her senior year with 43 steals on the season marking her second highest single season steals output of her career. The senior ended her career with 128 steals and accounted for the 19th most career steals in program history.
