NORTH MIAMI, Fla.- The Ave Maria University women's basketball team were unable to overcome a standout performance by one of The Sun Conference's top players on Thursday evening, and dropped to 8-8 in conference play with a 76-63 defeat at the hands of the Wildcats of Johnson and Wales University. AMU was also plagued by 20 turnovers, which proved to be the difference in a game where the Gyrenes shot better than the Wildcats from the field.

Johnson and Wales started fast on their home court, racing out to a 10-2 lead in the first three minutes of the contest. The Wildcats would not relinquish the lead in the opening ten minutes, despite an AMU run of 8-2 that cut JWU's lead back to two. The lead bounced between five and seven points for the final four minutes of the quarter, and Johnson and Wales held a 21-16 lead entering the second quarter.

Ave Maria's best quarter of the night was the second, where the Gyrenes outscored the Wildcats 20-11 to hold a 36-32 lead at the end of the first half. The second quarter started with Ave Maria on a 16-4 run, turning JWU's first quarter lead into a five-point edge for Ave. AMU would lead for the remainder of the quarter, and a layup from Miller with 17 seconds left in the frame allowed the Gyrenes to take their four point lead into the halftime break. 

The Wildcats responded by outscoring the Gyrenes 23-11 in the third quarter, giving Johnson and Wales a lead they would not relinquish. A layup from Lexie Jackson with three minutes left in the quarter gave the Wildcats the lead for good. JWU scored eleven of the final 14 points in the third quarter, opening up a 55-47 lead after the game was tied, 44-44, with 3:36 left.

In the fourth quarter, Johnson and Wales continued to pull away from AMU. Ave Maria never got closer than six points in the final ten minutes, which saw the Wildcats score 21 points to just 16 for the Gyrenes. AMU made just one field goal in the final four minutes, and turned the ball over six times in that span. 

Miller, who did not come out of the contest, scored 22 points and pulled down 16 rebounds in the losing effort. Danielle Weinmann added 13 points on just five shots in her first game on the floor since January 23. Tianna Ayulo was the lynchpin for the Wildcats, scoring 29 points.

The Gyrenes face a crucial test on Saturday, which will serve as Senior Day for the three graduating members of the women's basketball program. Ave Maria hosts the Seahawks of Keiser University at the Tom Golisano Field House, with tipoff scheduled for 2:00 p.m. Senior Day festivities are set to begin at 1:45 p.m. AMU needs the win to guarantee a .500 record in conference, and increase the Gyrenes' hopes of a spot in The Sun Conference Tournament.