In their final non-conference game of the season, the UNI Panthers women’s basketball team traveled to Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City for an in-state matchup against No. 12 Iowa. Despite a great effort and some stretches of playing very well, UNI fell to Iowa’s high-powered offense, 88-74.

The first quarter saw many lead changes, with neither team leading by more than four points in the opening 10 minutes. After the first period, the Panthers found themselves in front, 19-18.

A layup from Grace Boffeli gave the Panthers their biggest lead at 25-20, but the Hawkeyes quickly responded with an 11-0 run to take a 31-25 advantage. UNI bounced back quickly, scoring the next four to get back within two. A late 3-pointer by Iowa’s Gabbie Marshall gave the Hawkeyes a 46-39 advantage going into halftime.

The third quarter saw both teams have a rough time shooting the ball. However, Iowa was able to extend their advantage at the free throw line, making 12 out of 13 attempts in the quarter. This helped Iowa extend their lead to 13 going into the fourth quarter, 69-56.

UNI would not go away quietly, beginning the fourth quarter on a 10-2 run to get within 71-66. However, Iowa responded with a 5-0 run of their own, and the Panthers would never get that close again. After the final buzzer sounded, UNI fell to the Hawkeyes, 88-74.

Boffeli led the way for UNI, finishing with a team-high 16 points as well as seven rebounds. Maya McDermott followed closely behind, finishing with 15 points. Cynthia Wolf led the way on the boards, grabbing a team-high eight rebounds as well as pitching in six points. Emerson Green also had a well-balanced game, finishing with 11 points, six rebounds and three steals.

“I thought it was a really good game,” Head Coach Tanya Warren said after the game. “I thought we played extremely well. I thought in the third quarter we kind of got away from it in a stretch where we couldn’t score.”

“I thought our mindset was really good,” Coach Warren continued. “I liked how we defended. I thought our offense was pretty good early. For the most part, I was pleased.”

With the loss, UNI concludes the non-conference portion of their schedule with a 5-4 record. All four losses have come to teams that were nationally ranked at some point this season. UNI will resume play on Dec. 30, travleing to Peoria, Ill. to begin Missouri Valley Conference play in a matchup with Bradley.