The Eastern women’s basketball team lost on the road to Loyola-Chicago Wednesday night, falling to the Ramblers 58-48. 

With the loss, the Panthers fell to 5-5 on the season with two more games before conference season begins. 

Both teams opened the game shooting a high percentage in the first quarter, but both the Panthers and Ramblers scored just 13 points in the period. 

They followed suit in the second quarter and scored 13 points apiece, but both offenses struggled to make shots. 

Eastern shot 4-of-19 in the second quarter and Loyola shot 5-of-16, and the teams entered halftime with the score tied 26-26.

The scoring issues bled into the third quarter as well, with Eastern shooting 2-of-9 from the field and Loyola shooting 4-of-14. 

The Ramblers outscored the Panthers 14-7 in the third, and early in the fourth quarter extended their lead to 10 points. 

Eastern was able to cut the deficit to just two points with 4:29 left in the game, but the Ramblers pulled back ahead and ended the game on a 12-4 run to seal the victory. 

Loyola shot 6-of-8 in the fourth quarter bumping their shooting percentage for the game up to 41.2 percent. 

The 48 points scored by the Panthers are their fewest in a game this season, but their 58 points allowed are their third-fewest.

They shot 29.3 percent from the field in the game. 

It was also the first game for their Panthers in which they turned the ball over more than their opponent. Eastern had 20 turnovers while Loyola had 19. 

Eastern forward Abby Wahl had one of her better games on the season in the loss, scoring 16 points on 6-of-13 shooting and grabbing a season-high 11 rebounds. It was Wahl’s second double-double of the season. 

Senior guard Jordyn Hughes also scored in double figures with 10 points while shooting 2-of-3 from three-point range. 

Eastern’s leading scorer this season, junior guard Lariah Washington, was held to just four points on 2-of-11 shooting. 

It was only the second time this season she failed to reach double figures in scoring. 

The Ramblers had four players in double figures, led by junior guard Sam Galanopoulos with 13 points. 

Guard Bre Hampton-Bey had 10 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and four steals in the game. 

Eastern’s next game will be Dec. 20 when they host Lipscomb. The game will tip off at 3 p.m.

Adam Tumino can be reached at 581-2812 or ajtumino@eiu.edu.