FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Omaha women's basketball team dropped a 56-48 decision to Purdue Fort Wayne on Thursday afternoon at the Gates Sports Center.

Leaders for Omaha
Freshman forward Mariah Murdie paced Omaha with a career-high 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting with a 5-of-6 effort at the free throw line.  She added six rebounds, four steals and an assist.

Freshman forward Josie Filer posted a team-leading seven rebounds with nine points.  Junior guard Rayanna Carter chipped in seven points, four rebounds, two blocks and two steals.  Sophomore guard Claire Killian matched her with another seven points, alongside three assists.

Leaders for Purdue Fort Wayne
Purdue Fort Wayne was led by DeJour Young's 25 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the floor and 2-of-3 from three.  Young added six rebounds, two assists and a steal.  ShToya Sanders added a game-high 11 rebounds along with five points, three blocks and three steals.  Jaelencia Williams chipped in nine points and five rebounds.

Team Stats
Omaha shot 32.7 percent (17-of-52) from the field, but only 10.0 percent (2-of-20) from long range.  The Mavericks also shot 75.0 percent (12-of-16) from the free throw line.  UNO held a 35-31 advantage in rebounds.

Inside the First Half
After Purdue Fort Wayne took an early 7-0 lead, Omaha responded with an 8-1 run sparked by six points from Carter to tie things up at 10-10.  Sierra Bell went 1-for-2 at the line in the final second of the first quarter to give the Mastodons an 11-10 lead after the opening 10 minutes.

The Mavericks were outscored 13-4 in the second quarter and Purdue Fort Wayne led 24-14 at the break.

Inside the Second Half
Murdie, who was limited to two points in the first half, came out in the second stanza to shoot 8-of-12 with a 3-pointer for 22 more points.  Omaha improved its shooting to 40.7 percent (11-of-27), but Purdue Fort Wayne shot 50.0 percent (11-of-22) from the floor.  The 'Dons took their largest lead with 5:46 left in the fourth quarter, going up 44-31.  Murdie then scored 10 of the next 12 points for UNO to trim the lead to 49-43 with 3:25 remaining.  Purdue Fort Wayne then hit seven straight free throws down the stretch to secure the 56-48 victory.

The Mavericks are now 6-13 (1-6 Summit League) on the season, while the Mastodons improved to 5-14 (1-6).

Up Next
Omaha returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 26, visiting South Dakota State.  The game will be broadcast on YurView Cox Channel 1013, ESPN3 and Midco, and Donny Baarns will have the radio call on 1290 KOIL. Links to live video, audio and stats will be available on OMavs.com.