Even home-court advantage at Reitz Arena couldn’t save the Hounds against the Fairfield University Stags on Wednesday night. Coming off of a 67-55 loss to Villanova University, Loyola women’s basketball just couldn’t keep up with Fairfield, losing 71-45. Loyola’s record currently stands at 1-2, with their only win being over Lipscomb University.

Senior Colleen Marshall and sophomore Bri Betz-White each led the team with nine and eight points respectively, with graduate student Steph Smith also contributing seven points. Fairfield’s leading scorers Kelsey Carey and Casey Smith led the Stags with 20 and 14 points.

Loyola could not break through Fairfield’s impeccable defense or offense, and the stats prove it. The Greyhounds only had a lead over the Stags for 19 seconds in the entire first half. Despite an overall lack of offense from the Hounds, Betz-White’s defense was extremely impressive, especially for a guard who is merely 5’3”.

By halftime, Fairfield had already gained a 20-point lead on Loyola, making it much more difficult for the Hounds to catch up. Loyola began to close the gap in the third quarter when Smith banked a three-pointer, sending Fairfield into a lengthy scoring drought and giving the Hounds the momentum they needed to bring the score from 40-16 to 45-24. Unfortunately, Loyola was only able to close it to a 17-point gap before Fairfield came back.

Fairfield, coming off of a win against LaSalle University at home, kept their momentum consistent from the very beginning of the game. By the fourth quarter, the gap only continued to increase, as the Hounds remained stagnant, finally falling to the Stags 71-45.

Loyola will host Norfolk State University at Reitz on Nov. 21 and two days later will welcome the College of William & Mary again at home.