By Jim Fenton
CAGUAS, Puerto Rico -- The Bridgewater State University women's basketball team went 0-2 at the Puerto Rico Clasico, losing to a nationally ranked opponent Monday morning.
For the second straight game on the trip, the Bears got off to a slow start and struggled offensively. They were defeated by Washington University of St. Louis, 64-50, at the Coliseo Roger Mendoza to close out 2024.
BSU shot just 33 percent from the field (14-for-42) and led only once against Washington, ranked No. 15 in the D3hoops.com poll and No. 19 in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association poll.
The Bears also had the lead one time in a 71-52 loss to Dickinson College on Saturday morning, making just 17 of 77 shots (22 percent) in that game.
After starting the season 7-1 with a seven-game winning streak, BSU returns home 7-4 with three straight losses.
Washington, a member of the United Athletic Association, improved to 9-2. It defeated Dickinson, 63-45, on Sunday morning.
Senior Kylie Grassi (Plymouth, Mass.) was the top scorer for BSU with 11 points in just 13 minutes while senior Jessica D'Amours (Feeding Hills, Mass.) added seven.
Senior Arielle Cleveland (Groveland, Mass.) was the top rebounder with six and junior Haley Burchhardt (Schenectady, N.Y.) had three steals.
Washington received 12 points and seven rebounds from sophomore Lexy Harris (Marietta, Ga.) and 12 points from sophomore Alyssa Hughes (St. Charles, Ill.). Washington shot 52 percent (23 of 44) and outrebounded BSU, 27-17.
The Bears' lone lead of the day came 30 seconds into the game when Grassi made a 3-pointer. That was the lone field goal of the quarter for BSU, which trailed, 20-7, after the opening 10 minutes.
Washington answered with seven straight points before two free throws by junior Mairead Gallagher (Bridgewater, Mass.) made it 7-5 with 5:32 remaining.
The Bears did not score again until graduate student Kylee Piche (Bridgewater, Mass.) converted two foul shots with five seconds to go to end a 13-0 run by Washington.
BSU went 1-for-7 from the field and had seven turnovers while Washington shots 7-for-12 in the quarter.
The Bears trailed, 34-20, at halftime as they made only 5 of 19 shots (26 percent), hitting 4 of 11 from 3-point range. BSU had 11 turnovers for 13 points in the half.
The Bears closed within 22-13 with 1:26 gone in the second quarter as Cleveland and Grassi made 3-pointers.
But Washington held BSU without a field goal until Burchhardt N.Y.) made a 3-pointer with 4:09 left, making it 29-18.
The next Bears' field goal came with 1:27 left when sophomore Ashleigh Johnson (Carver, Mass.) scored on a pullup to make it 31-20.
Washington began the third quarter on a 12-3 run for a 46-23 lead before a 3-pointer by D'Amours with 6:50 left.
The Bears made only 4 of 12 shots while Washington hit 8 of 12 and held a 55-33 lead going into the final 10 minutes.
Two free throws by graduate student Jessica Brooks (St. Louis, Mo.) gave Washington its largest lead of the game, 57-33, just 1:04 into the fourth quarter.
BSU limited Washington to seven points the rest of the way and scored 17 points in the quarter to account for the final tally of 64-50.
The Bears return to Massachusetts on Tuesday and will play another nationally ranked team, Smith College, on Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Tinsley Center.
The Pioneers began the week 7-1 and are ranked No. 11 in the WBCA poll and No. 14 in the D3hoops.com rankings.
Smith played in the national championship game last season, losing to New York University.
Washington is idle until Jan. 11 when it hosts the University of Chicago.