MIAMI (February 4, 2017) -- Freshman Kayla Rogers (Jacksonville, Florida / Jean Ribault HS) scored a career-high 17 points in her first-career FIU start, but the Panthers could not outshoot league-leading Charlotte in a 101-54 Conference USA women's basketball loss Saturday on Lime Court at FIU Arena. The Panthers are now 5-16 on the season, with a 3-7 Conference USA mark. Charlotte remains in first place in the league standings at 9-2, with a 17-5 overall mark.
 
Rogers was 5-for-10 from the floor, which included a career-high three three-point field goals (3-for-4 from long distance) in the game. She added four rebounds and two assists to her ledger in the contest.
 
FIU's first-quarter struggles returned on Saturday, with the team starting 1-for-12 from the floor in the first five minutes. FIU missed its first 10 shots at home on Thursday.

"Charlotte did a good job of taking away Kristian (Hudson) and Janka (Hegedus) early and going inside against us, but we did not bring our game today," said FIU Head Coach Tiara Malcom. "You can scheme and gameplan and prepare all that you want, but the team has to bring its energy and focus on the court and I was disappointed that we did not have that today."
 
Also like on Thursday, the Panthers improved from the field in the second quarter to rally from the rough start. Redshirt sophomore Kiandre'a Pound (Gifford, Florida / Sebastian River HS) scored four quick points for the Panthers in the frame as FIU shot .389 in the second period.
 
Both teams started the third period shooting 6-for-9 from the field in the highest-scoring quarter of the game. Rogers was the first Panther to get to double figures, the fifth time for the season she has put up 10 points or more in a game. The Panthers were 7-for-14 in the third as both teams scored more than 20 points in the frame.
 
The fourth quarter was the lowest-scoring of the game, though both teams shot above 40 percent in the stanza.
 
Senior Tianah Alvarado (St. Peterbsurg, Florida / Gulf Coast State) added 10 points for FIU, her fifth game in double-figures this season, and the third in the last four FIU contests. Sophomore Kristian Hudson (Birmingham, Alabama) had six assists, the 10^th time this season and 20^th in her two-year career with five or more.
 
FIU will make the first of two Texas road trips next week, taking on Rice in Houston Thursday before visiting the Dallas area and a game at North Texas on Saturday.  
 
For women's basketball ticket information, contact the FIU Ticket Office at 305-FIU-GAME or log onto www.FIUSports.com.
 
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUWBB) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUWBasketball) for all the latest FIU women's basketball news. Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Google+ (FIU Athletics), Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics).
 
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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and at the FIU Football Stadium.
 
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelor¹s, master¹s and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU is Worlds Ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded 200,000 degrees and enrolls 50,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.