HAMILTON, Ont. - The McMaster Marauders women's basketball team (12-8) put up a strong fight against the Brock Badgers (14-6) on February 8. Despite a late push in the fourth quarter, they fell 76-72.

McMaster saw a number of key contributors, led by Emily Frankovic's (Thornhill, Ont.) 11 points and Amy Stinson's (Hamilton, Ont.) 10-point, 12-rebound double-double. Delaney Bourget (Sudbury, Ont.) and A'Mya Rawlins-Thomas (Ajax, Ont.) each contributed nine points, while Deanna Mataseje (Ancaster, Ont.) stuffed the stat sheet with six points, eight assists and three steals. The Marauders had the edge in points in the paint (32-20) and bench production (33-17), but struggled at the free-throw line, making just 12-of-26 attempts.

It was a close contest in the first half with McMaster holding a brief two-point lead, but Brock answered with an 8-0 run and took a 24-20 lead into the second quarter. The Badgers built on their advantage by draining shots from beyond the arc, taking a 47-41 lead into halftime.

Brock extended their lead in the third, but McMaster's tightened things up in the fourth. Trailing by 14 early in the final frame, the Marauders surged back, outscoring Brock 20-12 in the fourth. Sophia Urosevic (Kitchener, Ont.) nailed a crucial three-pointer with just over three minutes left to cut the deficit to five. Moments later, Mataseje capitalized on a fast break layup to bring McMaster within a possession.

Ultimately, a final defensive stop set up a potential game-tying possession, but the shot rimmed out, allowing Brock to escape with the win.

With the loss, McMaster remains in the third spot of the OUA Central standings. They look to bounce back on February 12 as they take on the Toronto Varsity Blues in font of the Marauder home crowd (1-18). The last time these two teams faced, the Marauders dominated the Varsity Blues, 86-49.