HUNTINGTON, West Virginia (Jan. 20, 2022) – The FIU women's basketball team came roaring back against the Marshall Thundering Herd on Thursday night, but the Panthers fell in the end by a score of 59-62 on the road.

FIU's record now stands at 9-6 on the season and 1-3 in Conference USA, while Marshall sits at 10-5 overall and 5-1 in the league.

Grace Hunter led the Blue & Gold with 12 points, while Emerald Ekpiteta grabbed a team-high 11 boards. Maria Torres had a season-high five blocks in the contest.

After a tough start that saw FIU down by 11 to end the first quarter, the Panthers outscored the Thundering Herd 18-17 in the second period before heading into the locker room trailing 25-35.

Behind 31-48 with 3:52 left in the third quarter, the Panthers clawed their way back into the game and went on to outscore Marshall 28-14 the rest of the way in an impressive comeback.

With the score at 38-51 heading in the fourth quarter, FIU locked in defensively, holding Marshall to only 11 points on a lowly 20 percent shooting in the final 10 minutes of play. Meanwhile, the Panthers put up 21 points on 62 percent shooting in the period.

FIU was within six points with 45 seconds remaining in the game when Kyla Nelson sank a layup and drew a foul to spark a three-point play for the Panthers. Marshall was able to successfully convert three free throw attempts in the waning moments however as the Thundering Herd pulled away and sealed a C-USA victory at home.

Tanajah Hayes and Ariel Colon each contributed 11 points in the game, while Nelson led all players with five assists.

As a team, the Panthers forced 19 Marshall turnovers in the contest and nabbed 10 total steals.

The Panther bench outscored Marshall 27-9 on the night.

UP NEXT
FIU finishes off its two-game road trip this Saturday, Jan. 22, at WKU. Game time against the Lady Toppers is slated for 1 p.m. ET from E.A. Diddle Arena. The contest will be broadcasted live on ESPN+.

TICKETS
For tickets to all upcoming women's basketball home games, click here.

SOCIAL MEDIA
Get all the latest information on the team by following @FIUWBB on Facebook and @FIU_WBB on Twitter and @FIUWBB on Instagram. General athletic news can also be found at @FIUSports on Facebook and @FIUAthletics on Twitter and Instagram.