Ramblers Fall to Red Line Rival DePaul 93-72

The Loyola women’s basketball team fell 93-72 against Red Line Rival DePaul University at Wintrust Arena Nov. 26. 

Graduate guard Sam Galanopoulos led the Ramblers with 20 points and went 8-11 on field goals. Graduate guard and forward Ali Berg followed close with 15 points going 4-4 from three. Graduate guard Anaya Peoples scored 29 points for the Blue Demons with second-year guard Kate Clarke right behind at 21 points. 

The game started with an immediate foul by DePaul’s graduate forward Jorie Allen on fourth-year forward Sitori Tanin, who made one of two for the Ramblers. Graduate guard Michelle Sidor sank a three on the next possession for DePaul to take an early 3-1 lead. Galanopoulos responded with a jumper to tie the game at three.

A missed three by Sidor was rebounded by graduate guard Alyssa Fisher before fourth-year guard Thoranna Kika Hodge-Carr and Allen had two turnovers each. Allen’s ball was stolen by Berg and sent to Tanin who missed the layup opportunity. 

Tanin’s miss was rebounded by DePaul’s graduate guard Katlyn Gilbert who sent it to Allen for a fast-break layup, increasing the Blue Demon lead to two. Galanopoulos hit a three in the seventh minute at 6-5. 

Peoples quickly responded to the Loyola momentum and knocked down a jumper to take the lead back, but Berg acted in her own way and sunk a three, making it 9-7. Allen tied the game at nine after going back up with an offensive rebound. 

A minute-long drought ended when graduate forward Emma Nolan made a jump-shot, giving the Ramblers their lead back at 11-9. Graduate forward Brynn Masikewich stole the ball from Emma Nolan and assisted Clarke in a fast-break three-pointer. 

The lead changed again as second-year guard Mallory Ramage hit a jumper at 13-12. A steal from Emma Nolan sent the teams into the first official time out. 

The Ramblers missed five straight field goals before Galanopoulos broke the drought and hit a jumper in the paint. Berg sent in a layup with a minute left in the quarter to make it 17-12. 

Peoples hit a jumper off a defensive rebound picked up by Clarke, decreasing the Ramblers’ lead to three at the end of the quarter. 

Second-year DePaul guard Maeve McErlane started the second quarter strong, sinking a three right away to tie the game. First-year guard and forward Charlece Ohiaeri took three attempts at jumpers in the same possession, sending the third one through the hoop and breaking the tie. 

Berg responded with a three-pointer giving Loyola the lead back, which started a back-and-forth lead exchange involving layups by Peoples and Galanopoulos, a jumper by Clarke and a layup by Tanin. 

Sidor increased the DePaul lead by two after making a three off a pass from Clarke. Tannin struggled at the bottom of the net missing two attempts to bring the Ramblers back before Hodge-Carr made a layup to even the game at 26. 

Emma Nolan broke the tie by making one free-throw. Blue Demon graduate guard Jade Edwards grabbed the next missed free-throw and dished it out to Clarke for a three, giving DePaul a 29-27 lead. Emma Nolan answered back with a layup to tie the game again at 29. 

Neither team scored for the next three minutes, with four misses from DePaul and one miss from Loyola. Berg broke the drought with a good three, followed by a jumper from Clarke, leaving Loyola ahead by just one. 

Gilbert took the lead for DePaul with a three-pointer before Fisher sent in a jumper to creep closer to the lead, but a three-pointer from Clarke kept the difference. 

Missed shots by Peoples and Edwards were picked up by Chivers, who drove down the court for a layup, sending the teams into the locker rooms at halftime 38-37 in favor of the Ramblers. 

Peoples started the scoring 30 seconds into the half with a fast break jumper. Jumpers from Tanin and Fisher brought the Ramblers ahead by three before Sidor shrunk the lead to one with a good field goal. 

Sidor kicked off an 11-point Blue Demon run increasing their lead to 49-42, with points by Allen, McErlane and Peoples. Berg shrunk the lead with a three-pointer which was responded with a layup from Allen, maintaining the DePaul lead. 

Galanopoulos made a shot to help the Ramblers get back, which was ultimately stopped by three-pointers made by Clarke and Gilbert creating a 10 point difference in the game. 

Emma Nolan sent in a layup, and a three-pointer by Galanopoulos brought Loyola within five. 

Chivers made a three but a jumper by Allen kept the teams separated by six points. Peoples drained two shots at the line before making a layup to end the corner with DePaul leading 67-57. 

Peoples’ hot-streak didn’t stop as she scored the first points of the third quarter on a jumper. Both Allen and Sidor added to the lead with a jumper and three-pointer. The Ramblers were scoreless until Berg made one of two at the line. 

The Blue Demons brought the score to 80-58 with a fast break layup, a freethrow and a three-pointer by Peoples. Galanopoulos cut the lead by adding two on a layup, which was instantly repeated by Clarke. 

Clarke made a three-pointer before the Blue Demons called a timeout with just under five minutes left in the game. 

DePaul pushed their score over 90 with layups from Allen and Peoples before Loyola responded with a layup and a made free-throw by Tanin. 

First-year guard Sumer Lee dropped in a layup and a foul by first-year guard Shakara McCline sent Ramage to the line where she made two, lowering DePaul’s lead to 93-69. 

Ramage scored the last points of the game, sinking a three with 13 seconds left in the game but it was only a consolation as they left Wintrust Arena with another loss at 93-72. 

Postgame, head coach Allison Guth reflected on the positives the team had and complimented the “skilled DePaul offensive team.” 

“I thought that our offense really clicked on some cylinders,” Guth said in a statement to Loyola Athletics. “Playing some defensive stops, playing through pressure and handling the ball. We go into the half with only seven turnovers against a pressurized team. More assists than turnovers are always a good thing, and we were that way at half.”

The Ramblers play next in Gentile Arena Saturday, Dec. 2 against Eastern Illinois at 12 p.m. The game can be streamed on ESPN+.

Featured Image Courtesy of Victor Adegoke | Loyola Athletics