SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. - The Slippery Rock University women's basketball team cut a 19-point third quarter deficit down to just nine with three minutes to play in regulation, but was unable to complete the comeback in a 71-53 loss to Bowie State on Sunday.
 
Slippery Rock (1-2) struggled early on, committing 10 turnovers and shooting just 8-for-26 in the opening two quarters as Bowie State (3-1) took advantage of the first-half slump to take a 38-22 lead into the halftime break.
 
The Bulldogs stretched their lead out to as many as 19 points at 41-22 early in the third quarter before The Rock came alive. The next 15 minutes belonged to SRU as The Rock methodically chipped away at BSU's sizable margin with a 28-18 run to make it a 59-50 contest with three minutes to play in the fourth quarter.
 
Six different Rock players scored during the run with Morgan Henderson and Brooke Hinderliter pacing the spurt thanks to eight points apiece. Kasch Harris (five points), Daeja Quick (four), Brittany Andrews (two) and Ciara Patterson (one) also contributed points during the run.
 
However, the nine-point margin would be as close as Slippery Rock could get as Bowie State made three of its final four field goal attempts and just enough free throws (4-for-7) while holding SRU to only three points through the late stages of the game on the way to the road victory.
 
Hinderliter finished the game with 14 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two steals. Henderson scored a season-high 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting overall, including a 2-for-4 showing from 3-point range, to go with eight rebounds over 30 minutes.
 
The trio of Patterson, Harris and Quick all added six points apiece. Quick also pulled down four rebounds and passed out four assists while Patterson had one block and made a pair of steals, as did Harris. Madison Johnson rounded out The Rock's leading scorers with five points.
 
As a team, Slippery Rock shot 34.5 percent (20-for-58) from the field overall, 21.1 percent (4-for-19) from 3-point range and 60 percent (9-for-15) from the foul line. Despite turning the ball over 10 times in the first half, Slippery Rock finished the night with just 13 total miscues.
 
The Bulldogs made 47.1 percent (24-for-51) of their field goal attempts and 70.4 percent (19-for-27) of their free throws. Kyaja Williams led Bowie State with 28 points, nine rebounds and three assists.
 
Slippery Rock continues non-conference competition when it starts a four-game road trip Nov. 21 at Walsh University. Tipoff in North Canton, Ohio is set for 5 p.m.
 
 
To stay up to date with all that happens at The Rock, follow our official athletic communication accounts on Twitter (@Rock_Athletics), Facebook (RockAthletics), Instagram (RockAthletics) and Snapchat (@RockAthletics).