OWENSBORO, Ky. – Aliyah Dukes led all scorers with 31 points, but the Davis & Elkins College Women's Basketball team was unable to rally Thursday night, falling to the Panthers of Kentucky Wesleyan 79-69 in Great Midwest Athletic Conference play.
 
After trading the lead multiple times before taking a 17-16 lead in the first quarter, the Senators fell behind the hosts as Kentucky Wesleyan reeled off 10 straight points in the final three minutes to end the quarter.
 
The Senators would make two big surges in the game, but were never able to completely recover in the contest. D&E outscored the Panthers 17-13 in the second quarter, but the hosts would capitalize on 24 turnovers in the game by D&E and pulled back out to a comfortable lead after a 23-12 run in the third quarter.
 
D&E would get the deficit to as little as five points in the final quarter, but were unable to bridge the gap despite outshooting and outrebounding Kentucky Wesleyan in the contest.
 
Dukes made 11 field goals and sank all seven of her free-throw attempts on the night. Her 31 points and 11 field goals were both season and career highs, along with her 39 minutes played in the game.
 
Dukes also had three steals in the game.
 
Kali Wilburn picked up her fourth career double-double and first of the season, grabbing 10 boards to go along with 13 points in the contest.
 
Sydney Turner also finished in double figures, sinking four shots from behind the arc for all 12 of her points.
 
The Senators finished the night shooting 46 percent as a team from the field, while also holding Kentucky Wesleyan to just 33 percent shooting. D&E also had the advantage on the boards with 40 rebounds to 33 by the Panthers.
 
However, Kentucky Wesleyan had 27 points off of 24 turnovers in the game by the Senators, while D&E was only able to turn 11 KWC turnovers into nine points.
 
The Senators will look to bounce back on Saturday as they travel to Nashville, Tennessee to take on Trevecca Nazarene. Tip of is set for 3 p.m. ET/2 p.m. CT.