First-year Ava Blagojevich dribbles past a Carnegie Mellon player on Jan. 19. (Anna Calvo | Staff Photographer)

Coming off a five-game winning streak, the No. 13 WashU women’s basketball team fell to Case Western Reserve University and No. 23 Carnegie Mellon University on Jan. 17 and 19. Despite making late surges, the Bears lost to the Spartans 57-64 on Friday and the Tartans 67-86 on Sunday. The team is now 10-4 overall on the season and 1-2 in University Athletic Association (UAA) play. 

Reflecting on the weekend’s losses, head coach Lisa Stone said that the team needs to focus on prioritizing defensive intensity during tough games. 

“You can’t let your offense affect your defense,” she said. “We need to dig in and be grittier. You can control your defensive intensity, but you can’t always control when your shot goes in.”

Sophomore center Lexy Harris echoed Stone’s sentiment, emphasizing the importance of playing together defensively. 

“We need to come out strong and confident with our defense and trust that our teammates are in the correct help positioning and are there for us,” she said. “The main component of having a strong defense is that we believe in ourselves and one another.”

The Spartans came out hot in the first quarter of Friday’s game, shooting often from the three-point line, with the team making 55% of their three-pointers throughout the game. The quarter ended with the Spartans up 20-12. 

The Spartans outscored the Bears again in the second quarter, putting up seven points to WashU’s three. Unable to prevent Case Western’s three point game, the half ended with the Bears trailing 33-21.

“I think coming out of halftime, we really joined together as a team, realizing we needed to have more energy,” Alyssa Hughes, sophomore guard and the game’s high scorer, said. “Whether that was getting stops on defense to lead to better offense, more encouragement from the sidelines, or positive touches on the court, we knew we needed to increase our intensity to get back in the game.”

In the third quarter, the Bears’ momentum changed, as they outscored the Spartans 15-11. Toward the end of the quarter, the Bears were able to go on an impressive 12-0 run. The Bears cut the margin smaller with the third quarter, ending with  44-36 for the Spartans.

Early in the fourth quarter, WashU went on a run, cutting the Spartans’ lead down by only three points. Hughes, the Bears’ high scorer with 19 points, drained five three-pointers in the fourth quarter to help cut down the lead.

Harris credited Hughes’ performance to the outside work that Hughes has devoted to her game.

“[Hughes’] shooting is outstanding, and you can tell how much she loves the game,” Harris said. “I have so much respect for her work ethic and can see all the extra hours she has put in the gym reflected in her game.” 

Hughes attributed her success to her teammates’ abilities to set up shots and their confidence in her to make critical shots.

“It is always a great feeling to knock down a few shots at critical times in the game, but I wouldn’t be able to do it without the constant support from my teammates and coaches,” Hughes said. “No matter how I’ve shot earlier in the game, they are always encouraging me to continue, and have tremendous belief in me.” 

On Sunday morning, the Bears came out ready to fight, taking an early 8-3 lead over the Tartans, which was led by two three-pointers from Hughes. However, the Tartans scored the next 27 points, putting WashU in a scoring drought for the final eight minutes of the first quarter. 

Coming out of halftime down 45-26, WashU picked up their offense to chip away at the Tartans’ lead. The Bears outscored Carnegie Mellon 24-17 in the third quarter, cutting the lead to single digits with 1:30 remaining. However, WashU was unable to sustain this momentum in the fourth quarter, ultimately trailing by 19 at the final buzzer. 

The Bears were led by Harris, who put up an impressive 23 points and eight rebounds. Hughes had another dominant performance, contributing 15 points, while graduate-student guard Jessica Brooks and freshman guard Ava Blagojevich both added 10. Brooks also recorded 10 rebounds and five assists, marking her seventh double-double of the season. 

Stone highlighted the defensive effort of Blagojevich, who matched up against the Tartans’ talented guard Catherine Or. 

“She played defense on, notably, one of the best players in the conference,” Stone said. “It was so good to watch her grow.”

As the team prepares for more conference play ahead, Stone said defense will remain the primary focus in practice.

“Overall, we’re disappointed in the losses, but it’s an opportunity to grow and learn,” she said. “I want to see how we respond, and I’m excited to get back to practice on Tuesday.”

Looking ahead, the Bears will travel to the University of Rochester on Jan. 24 and Emory University on Jan. 26 for their first away contests of the new year.